INUEFJflNDKNT Oh\ AND UNFETTERED BY 



THE TRADITIONS OF MEN, 




25 



COPYRIGHT, 1883. 
IY ELIHU JOHNSON. 
(s^ORS)? ■ ■ ZM*^ 



J>RESS_OF_ 
DELAND & BARTA, 
BOSTONT 



PON introducing this work to the public, the 
author first desires to say, that this volume is 
written to especially vindicate the character of 
of our Heavenly Father, which has been so 
grossly aspersed and defamed during many centu- 
ries, by those religious teachings which so misrepre- 
sent the true nature of the Most High. And this is 
desired, that man may become better acquainted 
with his Creator, the only true God, whom to know 
aright is life everlasting. And this remark applies 
not only to persons making no pretension to the re- 
ligion of Christ, but also to very many who do. For 
every man's God is to him, experimentally, just what 
he believes that God to be, as his view and comprehen- 
sion of God is in exact keeping with his belief in re- 
gard to God ; and that belief is in harmony with his 
religious instruction and experience. This is readily 
shown from the following language of Jesus to the 
Pharisees of his day, who thought they knew God, — 
" Jesus answered, Ye know not either me, or my 
Father. It is my Father that glorifies me, of whom 
ye say that he is your God ; and ye have not known 
him," John 8 : 19, 54, 55. As religious teachers, the 
Pharisees presented their God to the people \ but 



IV 



PKEFACE. 



they certainly could not have either portrayed, or 
described to them the only true God, because they 
knew him not, and thus, knew not his attributes, or 
nature. As it was with those Pharisees, so it has 
ever been, and is yet, with very many religious 
teachers. And speaking prudently, we may say that 
every religionist, whether he be a religious teacher, 
or not, has his God in harmony with his spiritual 
knowledge and understanding, however much, or 
little, that God may resemble the true and living 
God. 

Thus it follows, if a religious teacher's God is 
arbitrary, vindictive, unmerciful and revengeful, he 
presents such a God to the people, and his disciples 
believe in and worship that God. But if a religious 
teacher is himself taught by the Lord Jesus Christ, 
then he presents to his hearers the true God, infinite 
in love, wisdom, power, justice, mercy and truth, 
and thus portrays the nature of God, and his disci- 
ples worship the true and living God ; and thus God 
is honored before men, and his character is not de- 
famed as it is when his nature is misrepresented. 
Furthermore, what is the result to man ? It is this : 
as we are told in the Scriptures, that believers in 
the true God are transformed by the renewing of 
their minds, that is, by receiving the truth, into the 
likeness of God, it follows, that through the truth, 
which alone gives us a true description and concep- 
tion of God, is this transformation effected. Conse- 
quently, if we have a false description of God, we 
cannot be so transformed, but will be fashioned after 



PREFACE. 



V 



the God in whom we have believed. Thus the 
reader may readily see the importance of truly repre- 
senting God as He is , or, in other words, represent- 
ing God's nature as it is. This, according to the 
ability given him, the author has endeavored to do. 

Again, if, like Abraham, we are the friends of 
God, which every true Christian is, we are jealous 
of God's reputation, and will not quietly see that 
reputation defamed before men by a misrepresenta- 
tion of His nature. Please notice the last phrase, 
for it is by a false representation of God's nature 
that his character is defamed before men. For every 
one's true character is dependent, or based upon, his 
OAvn intrinsic merits or qualities. 

It may be said, that it is every person's privilege 
to either read, or not read a book. But when one 
decides to read a book in which points are taken, or 
propositions made, the reader, as he peruses the 
work, should decide whether each point is well made, 
and each proposition is well established, as the sub- 
sequent point, or proposition, may turn upon that 
next preceding it. This, the reader is respectfully 
requested to do as he peruses this volume ; for he 
will certainly find points in it. And the reader is 
especially requested to impartially decide, whether 
such points and propositions are, or are not, clearly 
sustained by the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ 
and those of his apostles. In fact, this volume can- 
not be read profitably, and with interest, it any other 
manner. 

Let the reader be assured, that he will not find 



vi 



PREFACE. 



this volume a rehash of sectarian religious teachings, 
with which the religious productions of this day so 
fully abound, and which present no new thoughts, 
ideas, or principles to the lover and seeker of reli- 
gious truth. But he will here find positions fear- 
lessly taken, and fully sustained by the word of 
God ; and, as expressed in the Title, independent of, 
and unfettered by the traditions of men. 

It is folly to deny that the whole Christian church, 
with but here and there an exception, is wrapped up 
in sectarianism, and consequently, led by sectarian 
influence and teachings; and especially is this the 
case with the religious teachers of the sects. Thus 
it follows, that when a believer, who is really free in 
Christ, commences reading some late religious work, 
he soon discovers that the author is bound by, or to 
something which deprives him of freedom ; and read- 
ing on, he perceives that the author is fast tethered 
to some religious dogma, or creed outside of the Bi- 
ble, and that he is continually travelling within a 
circle, which is measured by the diameter of his 
creed, and that the semi-diameter of the circle is the 
cord that binds him. The reader will please pardon 
the expression, that the condition of such a religious 
writer, or teacher, may be very properly illustrated 
by a calf tethered in a field where luxuriant feed 
abounds, yet the poor animal can only reach the 
soiled and closely clipped grass within the sweep of 
his tethering rope. But it is cheerfully admitted 
that he excels in two respects : first, he knows that 
he is bound ; second, he perceives that there is far 
better feed outside of his circle, than within it. 



PEEFACE. 



Vll 



Jesus says, " I am the door ; by me if any man 
enter, he shall be saved ; and he shall go in, and go 
out, and find pasture " — that is, an abundance of 
food. Does not the reader perceive that the words, 
" shall go in and out," show freedom of both thought 
and action? And this freedom all those who are 
truly free in Christ, may rightly claim and exercise, 
and will not be tethered; but such have the entire 
range of the "green pastures" of the Scripture. 
Psa. 23 : 2. Therefore, with Paul we say, that we 
will not submit, " no, not for an hour," to any who 
would "bring us into bondage;" but we will affec- 
tionately and boldly exercise our liberty in Christ 
Jesus our Lord, that the truth of the gospel may 
prevail, and God be glorified. See Gal. 2 : 4, 5. 
Such the reader will find the spirit of this volume to 
be — a determined contest for " the faith once deliv- 
ered to the saints." In it, and everywhere, and al- 
ways, the author takes the teachings of Jesus and of 
the apostles as the groundwork of his faith, and the 
Holy Spirit as his guide "into all truth;" and fur- 
thermore, claims that privilege for all believers, and 
also sets forth the conditions upon which we may 
have Jesus as our Teacher, through the operations 
of the Holy Spirit. 

And various erroneous renderings of Greek words 
and phrases in both Versions of the Testament, and 
especially in the old Version, are corrected; and 
also some rendered differently in the two Versions, 
are compared with each other to aid the reader in 
acquiring the truth, as no person can truly under- 



Vlll 



PREFACE. 



stand what the authors intended to teach, without 
the true meaning of the language used by them. 

Also the literal truths of the Bible are treated as 
such, and so are the spiritual ones, and the tendency 
of the times to spiritualize away, or to invalidate the 
truth by figures and metaphors, has been avoided. 

And to the Church of our glorified Redeemer is 
this volume dedicated. And the question, whether 
a second volume shall follow this, is cheerfully left 
to our Heavenly Father's good pleasure. 

Boston, Mass., A. D. 1883. 



PAGE 

Adam — his nature, .... 75-85 
His penalty, natural, not spiritual 

death, . . . . 85 
Aco)v, age, a man's life-time, etc., 

Abuse of, in its translation, . 255 
Koofio^ substituted in its place, . 256 
The cause of it, . . . 260 

Used in the plural, ... 258 
Two eternities the result of false ren- 
dering, .... 259 
Shown by Jesus' teachings to ex- 
press limited time, . . 257-8 
Distinction between end of the age 

and end of the world, . . 294 
Accdvcoq— its true meaning, . 255-263, 283-285 
Absurd result of its false rendering, 259 
Cause of it, .... 260 
Annihilation, .... 392 

Apostles, their election, . . . 121 

Their creed, .... 98 
Baptism of Fire, .... 191-211 
Bastards, and not Sons, . . . 205 

Begotten — distinction between begotten, 

and born of the Spirit, . 195-205 



X 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



Bride of Christ — her relation to the rest of 

mankind, . . . 139-146 

Shall judge the world, 206, 321-6, 264 
Not judged with the world, 263-6, 321-8 
Glorified and revealed, . . 141 
For what purpose, . 142-145, 347-370 
Calvinism — See Westminster Confession. 
Children the heritage of the Lord. Psa. 

127 : 3, . . . 374 

Christ — the great Teacher, . . 52, 53 

Conditions upon which we may be 

his pupils, . . . 37-47 

Eternal life only through him, 232-243 
Church — in darkness, . . . 61-68 

Emerging from darkness, . 68-72 
The light of the world and the salt 

of the earth, . . . 343 

Creeds — their fruits, . . . 94-111 

Did their authors have light ? 94-100 
Who has light, . . 94-100 

Creation — both creation and salvation in- 
cluded in the great plan of God, 69-86 
See Kzcac^. 

Damn and Damnation, . . 123, 252-4 

Death — no interference with God's will and 

plan, . . . . 368, 268 

Dead — See Promises. 

M Due time," .... 124, 87-91 
Destroy — meaning of, ... 152 

Election of Jesus as the Saviour, 83, 114 

Of Abraham, ... 114 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



xi 



Of all Israel as a nation, . 115-121 
Of the twelve apostles, . 121 

Of the Bride of Christ, . 125-128 
No reprobation in such election, 123 
God's election for the benefit of all, 

not simply the few, . 142-8, 327 
Will any besides the elect be saved ? 

211, 328-372 

True election, . . . 328 

Eternal Life only through Christ, 232-243 
Experience of true Christians similar to 

that of Jesus, . . . 189-209 
Bastards— who are, . . 205-207 
Factions and divisions condemned by the 

gospel, .... 313, 319 
Fire — Scriptural meaning of, . 206-210 

Fool's School, . . . . . 113 
God- — his nature and character, . . 48-60 
His ability and determination to per- 
form all his will, . . 100-105 
Religious creeds limit his power and 

deny his love, . . 100-102, 319 
Sons of God— who are, . 204-206 

Gospel — plan of salvation kept secret until 

Christ's first advent, . . 87, 130 
Not preached by Noah to the "spirits 

in prison," but by Christ, 129-132 
Heavenly places — meaning of, . . 220 
Heirs of God— who are, . 205, 321, 329 

Honest heart towards God, . . 35-47 
Humility an absolute necessity, . 40-44 



Xll 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



Israel— for what purpose blinded, . 10-18 
Broken off branches, . . 15 

For what purpose broken off, . 15 
Shall be grafted in again, . 16, 18 

Resurrection of Israel, . . 19 

Restoration of all Israel to Canaan, 19-34 
" Salvation from the Jews," . 1-34 

Jesus — who he was and is, . . 52-60 

The " tree of life," . . . 231-241 
How that tree has been guarded, 236-237 

Kingdom of heaven on the earth shown 

to be the church, , . 347 

Kpivco, to judge, to try, etc. 

Abuse in its translation, . 251-255 

Kpiotz, judgment, .... 251-255 

Krcac^ creation, as used in Rom. 8, . 349-372 
Signifies the unregenerate, . 349 

Schaff's and Olshausen's comments 

on, include mankind, . 349-351 

Author's comments, . . 351-372 
Shown from the Saviour's language 

that man only is included, . 360 
Liberty of the glory, . . 361-364 
Bondage of corruption, . 364-366 
What "liberty of the glory " means, 368-370 
Irrational creatures excluded, . 371 

Law — its object and effect, . . 149-152 

Leaven, 389 

Love — without it a person destitute of truth, 105 
Such a person always in darkness, 95-98 

Man— by nature mortal, . . . 231-238 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



xiii 



Becomes immortal by belief in Jesus, 239 
His present condition contrasted 
with that between Adam and 
Moses, .... 146 
Nations— judgment of, Matt. 25, . . 278 
Those on trial ignorant of the gos- 
pel, 286-293 

Noah — gospel not preached by him, but by 

the Saviour, 129-133, 160, 200-225 

Oveecomees joint-heirs with Jesus, 321-325 
Paeousla — meaning and derivation of, 300 
Principal passages where found, 301 
Not the destruction of Jerusalem, or 

at that time, . '. . 274, 332 

Signifies the presence of Jesus at the 

first resurrection, . . 266-270 
Peeish — meaning of, ... 151, 225 

Plan of God — based upon love, . 74 

Embraced both the creation and sal- 
vation of man, . . . 69-86 
Continues to develop in harmony 

with his will and purpose, . 83-92 
Puepose of God the spontaneous fruit of 

his love, and thus of his nature, 92-94 
Peomises of God embrace both the dead 

and living, . 211-220, 393-407 

Peedestination — See Westminster Confession. 
Questions for the thinking, . 248-251 

Repeobation — See Westminister Confession. 
Reconciliation, . . 341-346, 390 

Resueeection — first, that of life, 257-270 



xiv 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



Second, that of judgment, . 265 

From among the dead, . 175, 266 

Of the dead, . . . 175, 266 

Who have part in the first resurrec- 
tion, . . . 201-208, 301-314 
Paul's efforts to attain thereto, . 303 
Salvation— the free gift of God, , 346 

Satan's personal existence, . . 111-113 
Salted with fire, .... 189-211 

Samaritans — their restoration, . . 395 

Scripture — selections from, . . 2, 184 

Upon Election, . . 114-126 
Restoration of Israel, . . 14-34 
From the Old and New Versions of 

the New Testament compared, 252 
Sifted — its meaning, .... 166-169 
Sodomites — their restoration, . 394-397 
Sons of God — who are, . . 202-208 

Spiritual things not discerned by the natu- 
ral man, .... 180 
Spiritual believers, . . . 310 
Truth — its great worth — its office, . . 35 
Its power, . . . . 36 
Conditions upon which we may have 

it, 37-47 

Conclusions, ... 93, 94 

Suggestions, .... 44 
Unity of believers, .... 64, 329 
The result, .... 64, 330 
Vanity — man not willingly subjected to, 

144, 339, 355 



* 



TABLE OF CONTENTS, 



Westminster Confession, . . . 372 
Calvinistic teachings compared with 
Scripture teachings, . 372-393 

Shorter Catechism, chap. ILL, 372 
Some men and angels predestined to 
eternal death, others to eternal 
life, sec. 3, .... 373 

Number fixed and definite, sec." 4, 373 
No others redeemed by Christ, sec. 6, 373 
Elect infants, chap. X.. sec. 3, . 374 
Children the heritage of the Lord, 

Psa. 127 : 3, .... 374 
Fall of man. of sin, and punishment, 

chap. VI., .... 376 

Original sin — what it is, . . 377 
Anther's comments, . . 377-380 
Wesleys' (John and Charles) views 

of Predestination, . ' 380, 381 

Reprobation, religions poison, . 382 
Further comments, . . 382, 383 
Scripture quotations denying repro- 
bation. .... 384-387 
Comments on, . . . 387-393 
Reprobation bolstered up by perver- 
sion of Scripture, . . . 382 
Illustrated by Cruden's comments 

on the word world, . . . 383 



'FOE SALVATION IS FROM THE JEWS." 



John 4 : 22. 

r» s) 

S <D 

<?S the gospel is the good news of man's salva- 
[{ tion, and also of his elevation, and as the 
V teaelrings of Jesus and the apostles consti- 
^ tuted the gospel, and as many who are termed 
" well-read ,? are not so well versed in those teach- 
ings, and in the old Scriptures, as to be able to recall 
them at their pleasure, I think it well to first lay a 
good foundation for subsequent remarks by quoting 
from the words of Him who said : " Heaven and 
earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass 
away." — Matt. 24: : 35. Again, if the reader truly 
loves the word of God, and loving that word is well 
versed in it. yet the quotations as he will find them 
arranged, will refresh his memory, probably recall 
other Scriptures to mind intimately connected with 
the subject under consideration, and thus better pre- 
pare the reader to either receive, or reject the views 
of the author. Therefore, without further comment, 
please let the following quotations serve as the intro- 
duction of this work. 

" You only have I known of all the families of the 
earth , therefore I will punish you for all your in- 
iquities. — Amos 3 : 2. 



2 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



"What advantage then hath the Jew? or what 
is the profit of circumcision ? Much every way ; 
first of all that they were entrusted with the oracles 
of God."— Rom. 3 : 1-3. 

" I say the truth .... I lie not, my conscience 
bearing witness with me in the Holy Ghost, that I 
have great sorrow and unceasing pain in my heart. 
For I could wish that I myself were anathema (or 
separated) from Christ for my brethren's sake, my 
kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, 
whose is the adoption, and the glory, and the cove- 
nants, and the giving of the law, and the service of 
God, and the promises, whose are the fathers, and of 
whom is Christ according to the flesh, who is over 
all, God blessed forevermore." — Rom. 9 : 1-5. 

u But he answered and said, I was not sent but 
unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. But she 
came and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 
And he answered and said, It is not meet to take 
the children's bread and cast it to the dogs." — Matt. 
15 : 24-27. 

" Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and enter 
not into any city of the Samaritans, but go rather to 
the lost sheep of the house of Israel." — Matt. 10 : 5. 

I have given the foregoing selections from Script- 
ure to remind the reader of the remarkable honor 
and blessings bestowed during a long period of time, 
upon the descendants of Jacob, composing the king- 
dom of Israel, or the nation, in scriptural language, 
known as Israel. I now present the following selec- 
tions showing the withdrawal of God's favor from 
Israel, and a few showing its restoration. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



3 



" He hath blinded their eyes and he hardened 
their heart ; lest they should see with their eyes, 
and perceive with their heart, and should turn, and 
I should heal them."— John 12 : 38-40. 

" Therefore I say unto you, the kingdom of God 
shall be taken from you, and shall be given to a na- 
tion bringing forth the fruits thereof." — Matt. 
21 : 43. 

"O J erusalem, Jerusalem, which killeth the proph- 
ets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her ! how 
often would I have gathered thy children together, 
even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her 
wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is 
left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye 
shall not see me hereafter, until ye shall say, Blessed 
is he that cometh in the name of the Lord ! " — Matt. 
23 : 37-39. 

"And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, 
and shall be led captive into all the nations; and 
Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles, 
until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." — Luke 
21 : 24. 

44 And after they had held their peace, James an- 
swered, saying, Brethren, hearken unto me : Simeon 
hath rehearsed how, at first, God did visit the Gen- 
tiles, to take out of them a people for his name. 
And to this agree the words of the prophets ; as it 
is written, After these things I will return, and I 
will build again the tabernacle of David which is 
fallen, and I will build again the ruins thereof, and 
will set it up, that (or when) the rest of mankind 



4 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



may diligently seek the Lord, and all the nations 
upon whom my name shall be called, saith the Lord. 
.... Known unto God are all his works from the 
beginning of time." — Acts 15 : 13-18. 

" And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt 
call his name Jesus: for it is he that shall save his 
people from their sins." — Matt. 1 : 31. 

" He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of 
the Most High ; and the Lord God shall give unto 
him the throne of his father David; and he shall 
reign over the house of J acob through the ages, and 
of his kingdom there shall be no end." — Luke 1 : 
32, 33. 

In this volume the following rules of interpreta- 
tion will be followed as given by their eminent au- 
thors. 

Says Martin Luther : " That which I have so often 
insisted on elsewhere, I here once more repeat, viz. : 
that the Christian should direct his first efforts to- 
ward understanding the literal sense (as it is called) 
of Scripture, which alone is the substance of faith 
and Christian theology. The allegorical sense is 
commonly uncertain and by no means safe to build 
our faith upon." 

Says Bishop Jeremy Taylor : " In all the interpre- 
tations of Scripture, the literal sense is to be pre- 
sumed and chosen, unless there be evident cause to 
the contrary." 

From the learned Vitringa we have the following : 
"We must never depart from the literal meaning of 
the subject maintained in its own appropriate name, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



5 



* if all, or its principal attributes square with the sub- 
ject of the prophecy." 

Says Hooker : " I hold it for a most infallible rule 
in exposition of sacred Scripture, that when a literal 
construction will stand, the farthest from the letter 
is commonly the Worst. There is nothing more dan- 
gerous and delusive than that art which changes the 
meaning of words, as alchemy doth, or would, the 
substance of metals; making of any thing what it 
listeth, and bringing, in the end, all truth to noth- 
ing." 

Let the reader note the last eight words of Hook- 
er, — " bringing, in the end, all truth to nothing " ; 
for much of that is being done in this generation. 
The following conversation between a minister and 
a Jew is an apt illustration of it. Taking a New 
Testament and opening it at Luke 1 : 32, the Jew 
asked : " Do you believe that what is here written 
shall be literally accomplished — 4 The Lord God 
shall give unto him the throne of his father David ; 
and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever'?" 
" I do not," answered the clergyman ; " but rather 
take it to be figurative language, descriptive of 
Christ's spiritual reign over the church." " Then," 
replied the Jew, " neither do I believe literally the 
preceding words which say that this son of David 
should be born of a virgin ; but take them to be 
merely a figurative manner of describing the remark- 
able character for purity of him who is the subject 
of the prophecy. But why," continued the Jew, 
" do you refuse to believe literally verses 32 and 33, 



6 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



while you believe implicitly the far more incredible 
statement of verse 31 ? " "I believe it," replied the 
clergyman, " because it is a fact." "Ah ! " exclaimed 
the Jew, "you believe Scripture because it is &fact; 
I believe it because it is the word of God." Verse 
31 reads as follows : " And behold, thou shalt con- 
ceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt 
call his name Jesus ; " and why should not the cler- 
gyman's method of figurative interpretation have 
been applied to the last verse as well as the others ? 
One very good reason is that such rule was not ap- 
plicable to either, and furthermore, the minister 
would not have used such a system of interpretation 
if his creed had not forced him to it. Let such a 
figurative system of exposition be continued and ex- 
tended, and all gospel truth would be brought to 
nothing. So, at last, to use the Lord's words: 
" Will he find the faith on the earth ? " Already the 
return of the Lord Jesus Christ is something very 
indefinite, and even questionable, in the minds of 
many who trust in him for salvation. Many pas- 
sages of Scripture have a spiritual as well as a literal 
signification ; but we should be careful and not sac- 
rifice one to the other, or substitute one for the 
other in any case. Again, we should be exceedingly 
careful not to cause others to do so, and thus lead 
them away from the truth into error, instead of lead- 
ing them into the truth. 

Jesus says, " My words are spirit : my words are 
life ; " and we should seek and obtain that spiritual 
life from the word of God. Yet we should remem- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



7 



ber that Jesus while here in the flesh, not only did, 
but also uttered many literal things, as well as spir- 
itual ones ; and such literal truths yet remain, as do 
the spiritual ones. Take away the literal truths, 
and where is the foundation of the spiritual ones ? 
Take away the spiritual truths, and of what benefit 
are the literal or natural ones ? 

Having made the foregoing remarks, we will now 
proceed to ascertain how, or in what manner, salva- 
tion is from the Jews. But first I ask the reader to 
carefully peruse the 9th, 10th and 11th chapters of 
Romans, for those three chapters contain Paul's re- 
marks to the Romans and all other Gentiles, respect- 
ing Israel. 

In Rom. 9 : 16, as we have already noticed, he in- 
troduces the subject by saying, " I say the truth in 
Christ; I lie not, my conscience bearing witness 
with me in the Holy Ghost, that I have great sorrow 
and unceasing pain in my heart. For I could wish 
that I myself were anathema (or separated) from 
Christ for my brethren's sake, my kinsmen accord- 
ing to the flesh, who are Israelites ; whose is the adop- 
tion, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giv- 
ing of the law, and the service of God, and the prom- 
ises," etc. Then in verse 33, he says of them (the 
Israelites), "They stumbled at the stone of stum- 
bling, even as it is written, Behold I lay in Zion a 
stone of stumbling and a rock of offence." Then in 
11 : 21, we read, " But as to Israel he saith, All the 
day long did I spread out my hands unto a disobedi- 
ent and gainsaying people," — the last being the word 



8 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



of God through the prophet Isaiah. Then with the 
beginning of chap. 11 we hear Paul saying, " I say 
then, did God cast off his people ? God forbid. For 
I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the 
tribe of Benjamin. God did not cast off his people 
which he foreknew," etc. 

Now will any one say that Paul in the foregoing 
quotations does not mean natural Israel, the descend- 
ants of Jacob ? I think not. And it follows that if 
he there means natural Israel, he then means the 
same throughout his entire discourse respecting his 
people, until the contrary appears ; and as in verse 1 
of chap. 9, he commences his discourse by speaking 
of natural Israel, his "kinsmen according to the 
flesh," it is correct to hold that he continues to do 
so until his own words show, or until he tells us that 
he is speaking of something else. But that Paul in 
this whole discourse, is considering the situation of 
natural Israel is too evident to be disputed, or even 
questioned, by an unprejudiced mind. And thus 
soon after introducing this subject so near his heart, 
he mentions Jacob and Esau as illustrations of God's 
election, and his unquestionable prerogative to exer- 
cise such election , doing this in order to prepare 
the minds of his readers for what follows in regard 
to Israel — natural Israel ; and hereafter when I use 
the term Israel alone, natural Israel is meant. First 
we should notice that Paul in calling the attention 
of the Romans to the Jews, and their relative stand- 
ing to the entire Gentile world in regard to the gos- 
pel, first proceeds to lay a firm foundation, by quot- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



9 



ing from the prophets as follows : " But I say, Did 
Israel not know ? First, Moses saith, I will provoke 
you to jealousy with that which is no nation ; with 
a nation void of understanding will I anger you 
(Deut. 32 : 21). And Isaiah is very bold and saith, I 
was found of them that sought me not, and I became 
manifest to them that asked not for me (Isa. 65 : 1). 
But as to Israel he saith : all the day long did I 
spread out my hands to a disobedient and gainsaying 
people," (Isa. 65 : 2).— Rom. 10 : 19-21. But let us 
constantly remember, while we examine this subject, 
that until the glorious gospel of the Lord Jesus was 
preached to the Gentiles, they were destitute of a 
knowledge of God ; and that it was then, and not 
till then, that God was found by them who had not 
sought him. But Paul proceeds: "I say then, Did 
God cast off his people ? God forbid. For I am 
also an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the 
tribe of Benjamin. God did not cast off his people 
which he foreknew." — Rom. 11 : 1. Please remem- 
ber, as we proceed, this direct and positive declara- 
tion by Paul in regard to Israel, viz. : that God has 
not cast them off, that we, with him, may understand 
the present condition of the Hebrews ; how it is, or 
by what means they are in their present state, and 
for what purpose. Says Paul, " That which Israel 
seeketh for, that he obtained not, but the election 
obtained it, [that is, the elect portion of Israel,] and 
the rest were hardened, according as it is written, 
God gave them a spirit of stupor ; eyes that they 
should not see, and ears that they should not hear, 



10 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



unto this very clay. [Note that God did it.] And 
David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and 
a trap, and a stnmblingblock, and a recompense unto 
them : let their eyes be darkened, that they may 
not see and bow thou down their back alway." 
And this agrees with the sayings of Jesus respect- 
ing them. See Matt. 13 : 13. Mark 4 : 11, 12. And 
now Paul asks this very important question, and in 
a very positive and direct manner, and for a very 
specific purpose : " I say, then, did they stumble 
that they might fall ? "—Rom. 11 : 11. That is, did 
God give them, the seed of Abraham, the offspring 
of the faithful Abraham, the friend of God, a spirit 
of stupor, eyes that they should not see, and ears 
that they should not hear, unto this day, for the pur- 
pose that they might fall ? That is, was their fall 
the purpose God had in view, or was it one of the 
instrumentalities God used to accomplish his benign 
purpose to all men ? Let us go right back to the 
birth of Christ, our Lord, and listen to Simeon, of 
whom Luke says, " The Holy Spirit was upon him." 
" And behold there was a man in Jerusalem, whose 
name was Simeon ; and this man was righteous and 
devout, looking for the consolation of Israel ; and 
the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been 
revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, that he should 
not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 
And he came in the Spirit into the temple ; and 
when the parents brought in the child Jesus, that 
they might do concerning him after the custom of 
the law, then he received him into his arms, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



11 



blessed God, and said, Now lettest thou thy servant 
depart, O Lord, according to thy word, in peace ; 
for my eyes haye seen thy salvation, which thou hast 
prepared before the face of all peoples, a light for 
the unveiling of the Gentiles, and the glory of thy 
people Israel. And his father and his mother were 
marvelling at the things which were spoken con- 
cerning him, and Simeon blessed them, and said unto 
Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the 
fall and rising again of many in Israel." — Luke 
2 : 25-34. In these inspired declarations of Simeon 
are two assertions, which we should particularly 
notice. First, that Jesus was to be the glory of 
God's people Israel ; and secondly, that he was ap- 
pointed both for the falling and rising again of many 
in Israel. And that Simeon spake of natural Israel 
is very evident from the fact that the great plan of 
salvation had not then been revealed to man, and 
consequently, Simeon could only see or comprehend 
natural Israel ; and also, from the further fact, that 
it could not be any portion of spiritual Israel that 
was to fall and rise again. And consequently, we 
must conclude that the many who fall and rise again, 
are the same of whom Paul says, " But by their fall 
or trespass, salvation is come to the Gentiles." By 
whose fall ? Was it by the fall of the elect portion 
of Israel that salvation is come to the Gentiles ? 
Was it to the elect that God gave a spirit of stupor, 
eyes that they should not see, and ears that they 
should not hear unto " this day ? " Was it to the 
twelve apostles, and to the three thousand converted 



12 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



on the day of Pentecost, that such a stupor, and 
such eyes and ears were given ? And they were all 
Hebrews. Jesus says, (Mark 4 : 11,) in speaking to 
the Twelve, " Unto you is given the mystery of the 
kingdom of God." And it was to the elect of Israel 
the Spirit of - truth was promised by the Lord Jesus ; 
and it was upon the same elect the Holy Spirit first 
descended upon the day of Pentecost, so that they 
henceforth walked in the light of God. And thus, 
instead of falling, they rose into newness of life in 
Christ the Lord. Therefore, the elect of Israel do 
not constitute, or form any portion of that class, by 
whose fall, or lapse, salvation is come to the Gen- 
tiles, 

It, therefore, follows that it was, and is the other 
class, viz: those who stumbled and fell, and also 
those Jews who yet stumble and fall. And Paul 
tells us as follows, how they stumbled and fell : 
" The Gentiles who followed not after righteousness, 
attained unto righteousness, even the righteousness 
which is of faith ; but Israel, following after a law 
of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Where- 
fore ? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it 
were, by works. They stumbled at the stone of 
stumbling ; even as it is written, Behold, I lay in 
Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence to 
both the houses of Israel ; and for a gin and for a 
snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, or for a stone 
of stumbling and for a rock of offence. — Rom. 9 : 
30-33, Isa. 8 : 14. And Isaiah adds in the 15th verse, 
"And many of them shall stumble and fall, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



13 



be broken, and be snared, and be taken." And 
Paul tells us, 1 Cor. 1 : 23, that stumbling-stone 
was Christ. And Jesus says to the Jews in 
speaking of himself, " Every one that falleth on 
this stone, shall be broken to pieces; but on 
whomsoever it shall fall, it will scatter him as dust." 
— Matt. 21 : 44. Please notice the distinction Jesus 
makes between those who stumble at, or fall upon 
that stone, and those upon whom that stone falls. 
Now the unbelieving Jews of whom Paul speaks, 
are those who stumbled at Christ, and they have 
been broken, but they have not yet been scattered 
as dust. That stone has not yet fallen upon any 
one. And Paul says of them, and evidently in ex- 
tenuation, " I bear them witness that they have a 
zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For 
being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking 
to establish their own, they did not subject them- 
selves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is 
the end of the law unto righteousness to every one 
that believeth." Yes, Paul gives them credit for 
having a zeal for God. And now, do all the pro- 
fessed followers of Christ have as much ? 

But we must further consider verses 11 and 12, 
where the word fall occurs three times, but with very 
different meanings ; for the original word is not the 
same. In the phrase, " Did they stumble that they 
might fall ? " the word mocooi, from mrcTco, is used. 
Now.7zy7ztco, to fall, is used in a sense so emphatic 
and comprehensive as to signify to be slain, or to 
perish ; as we say, to fall in battle, which signifies to 



14 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



be killed, or to die. And it is in this sense that 
Paul uses the word twztco, fall, when he says, " Have 
they stumbled that they should fall ?" That is, have 
they stumbled that they should fall to rise no more, 
to perish without remedy ? Now mark his reply : 
" God forbid." But in the phrases, " their fall," and 
the " fall of them," TzapaTzrcofxa is the original word, 
which means only such a fall as is recoverable, and 
also signifies lapse or offence, as in chap. 5 : 17, 18. 
This distinction should be carefully noted by the 
reader, if he would acquire the true force and mean- 
ing of what the apostle really expresses in the origi- 
nal tongue, but which is lost in the English version. 
I refer the reader to Adam Clark's Commentary for 
further information, if he desires. See his com- 
ments on these two verses, and also on verse 26, 
where that accomplished scholar and servant of God 
makes some very important admissions and state- 
ments (for one entertaining his views respecting 
God's plan of salvation), in regard to what our 
heavenly Father has yet in store for the Israelites. 

Let us further consider Paul's question, " Did 
God cast off his people ? " After replying, " God 
forbid," or, Let it not be, he asks in verse 12, " Now 
if their fall, (or lapse), is the riches of the world, 
and their loss the riches of the Gentiles, how much 
more their fullness ? " that is, how much more will 
their fullness avail ? Again, in verse 15, " For if 
the casting away of them is the reconciling of the 
world, what shall the receiving of them be, but 
life from the dead ? ; ' Now if nothing more was 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 15 

said by Paul upon the subject, one would naturally 
infer that the Hebrews would, at some time, be re- 
stored to the favor of God, and accept Jesus as the 
Messiah. But that you may not also stumble at the 
truth, let us recall the declaration of Jesus : " With 
God all things are possible." — Matt. 19 : 26. And 
also to Martha, " I am the resurrection and the life ; 
he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet 
shall he live." — John 11 : 25. The death of the 
body places no person beyond God's control or dis- 
position. But that we Gentiles may not be wise in 
our own conceits, or conceited, in verse 25, he pro- 
ceeds, as follows, to show us our relative standing to 
Israel. "And if the first fruit is holy, so is the 
lump ; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 
But if some of the branches were broken off, and 
thou, being a wild olive, wast grafted in among them, 
and didst become partaker with them of the root and 
of the fatness of the olive tree, glory not over the 
branches ; but if thou gloriest, it is not thou that 
bearest the root, but the root bearest thee." And 
thus taking our own plea from off our lips, he says, 
" Thou wilt say then, the branches were broken off, 
that I might be grafted in." And then replies, 
" Well, by their unbelief they were broken off, and 
thou standest by thy faith," verses 15-20. Now 
Israel is that root, and is also the branches ; in fact, 
Israel comprehends both root and branches ; and it 
is only the blinded branches of Israel that during 
the past eighteen hundred years have been broken 
off, in harmony with God's wise plan and providence, 



16 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



for our salvation, and also for theirs. For Paul, 
after warning us, the wild olive, not to glory over 
the broken off branches of the olive tree into which 
we have been grafted by the goodness of God, fur- 
ther warns us not to be highminded, but fear, and 
continue in God's goodness, otherwise we shall also 
be cut off. And then says, that they, also the broken 
off branches of Israel, shall be grafted in again, if 
they continue not in unbelief. And lest we Gen- 
tiles should doubt God's ability to do so, adds : " For 
God is able to graft them in again." What branches? 
The broken off ones. And then he follows the as- 
sertion, with the following language and reasoning. 
"For if thou" (viz., you the Gentile converts), 
" wast cut out of that which is, by nature, a wild 
olive tree, and wast grafted, contrary to nature, into 
a good olive tree, how much more shall these, which 
are the natural branches, be grafted into their own 
olive tree " Which reasoning in truth, amounts to 
almost, or quite, a positive assertion that those 
broken off branches will, hereafter, in God's own 
time, be grafted again into their own true olive 
tree. But some one may now be saying, " Well, I 
have always been taught, and believed, that some- 
time either in the near, or distant future, the whole 
Jewish nation, by the help of God, will believe in 
Christ and be saved. Yes, in such case, all the Jews 
then dwelling upon the earth, and their descendants 
would be saved. But what would then be the future 
condition of those broken off Hebrews whom God 
has blinded for the salvation of our ancestors, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



17 



our own, during the past eighteen hundred years, 
and it may be also for Gentile generations yet to 
come ? But friend, your theory of salvation would 
only embrace Israelites living at, and after some fu- 
ture period of time, commencing with that particu- 
lar generation which shall hereafter receive the gos- 
pel, and wholly ignores all the branches of the true 
olive tree, which have been broken off for the Gen- 
tiles' sake, and that is for our salvation. Allow me 
to ask with due respect, if your theory does not 
leave all the broken off branches of Israel in hell, 
and there to remain through all eternity, according 
to what is called orthodoxy. But I cannot think 
your theory, in your own mind, harmonizes with 
your view of God's justice, and much less his love. 
You may bow with reverential submission as thou- 
sands of good people have done, to what you consid- 
er God's plan of salvation ; but have you never 
wondered why God should blind almost all the entire 
family of Israel during so many centuries and gen- 
erations, and thus subject them to eternal misery and 
punishment, that a portion, and, as the Calvinistic 
theory has it, the much smaller portion, of the Gen- 
tiles might be saved, and forever enjoy all the su- 
preme felicity and glory, which God has indeed pre- 
pared for them who love him ? Owing to much of 
the religious teachings of the times, and erroneous 
phraseology of the Scriptures, one might easily fall 
in with the latter theory, but it certainly does not 
harmonize with either the infinite love, mercy, or 
justice of God, as portrayed by the teachings of his 



18 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Son, and exemplified by his life, while he tabernacled 
with men. For all that life was a life of love, man- 
ifested continually in the works thereof. And he 
tells ns that he did the works of the Father, and if 
so, then he manifested the love of the Father. 
Neither does the last mentioned theory agree with 
the teachings of Paul, if his final conclusion of the 
whole subject is correctly given, which we will pro- 
ceed to examine, first giving his own language. 
" For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant of 
this mystery, lest ye be wise in your own conceits, 
that a hardening in part hath befallen Israel until 
the fullness of the Gentiles be come in ; and so all 
Israel shall be saved : even as it is written, There 
shall come out of Zion the Deliverer. He shall 
turn away ungodliness from Jacob, and this is my 
covenant unto them, when I shall take away their 
sins," verses 25, 26, 27. Now, right at this point, 
my brother, please be willing yourself, that all Israel, 
even from Abraham down to the end of time, not 
excepting Judas Iscariot, may be saved. Also re- 
member that with God all things are possible. Yes, 
and easy. And don't believe that God cannot reach 
in beyond the grave to deliver the descendants of 
faithful Abraham, his people. Yes, Christ's people, 
whom good old Simeon said he would save from their 
sins. And don't suffer erroneous teachings, and lack 
of faith in the power of God, and the gospel of the 
Lord Jesus Chirst, to make you believe that God 
won't do what He says He will ; and that He will do 
something different in the place of it. But recall 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



19 



the words of our Lord Jesus to Peter : " Upon this 
rock I will build my church, and the gates of death, 
or Hades, shall not prevail against it." — Matt. 16 : 18. 
You might as readily disbelieve the resurrection of 
the dead. Neither be like the unbelieving and sor- 
rowing Hebrews, saying, " Our bones are dried, and 
our hope is lost; we are cut off from our parts." 
But listen to God who says, " Thus saith the Lord 
God, O my people, I will open your graves, and 
cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring 
you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that 
I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O 
my people, and brought you up out of your graves, 
and shall put my Spirit in you, and ye shall live ; 
and I shall place you in your own land." — Ezek. 37 : 
11-14. Please read the whole chapter, and notice 
that in the 11th verse God says, " These bones are 
the whole house of Israel ; " and in the last four 
verses God says, " And they shall dwell in the land 
that I have given unto my servant Jacob, wherein 
your fathers have dwelt ; and they shall dwell there- 
in, even they and their children, and children's chil- 
dren, forever ; and my servant David shall be their 
prince forever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of 
peace with them : and I will place them, and multi- 
ply them, and I will set my sanctuary in the midst 
of them forevermore. My tabernacle shall also be 
with them ; yea, I will be their God, and they shall 
be my people. And the heathen shall know, that I 
the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall 
be in the midst of them forevermore." Now God 



20 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



plainly declares, that in this chapter is described the 
resurrection of the whole house of Israel, including 
every generation. Therefore, if one says, this de- 
scribes a spiritual resurrection, the fact still remains 
that it is the resurrection of the whole nation ; and 
if it is a literal resurrection, the same fact is there — 
all Israel. Paul's expression is evidently the same, 
the whole house of Israel. And God says that he 
will make a covenant of peace with them ; and re- 
store them to the country which he gave to his ser- 
vant Jacob, wherein their fathers dwelt. Then God 
says that he will place his sanctuary in the midst of 
them forevermore. Then he adds, " my abode shall 
be with them * * * and I will be their God, 
and they shall be my people." And then God tells 
us, that when these important events occur, the Gen- 
tiles shall know that he, the Lord, does sanctify 
Israel. Now is it not far better, and more pleasing 
to our heavenly Father, that we should now receive 
and believe his plain declarations, instead of waiting 
till we see their fulfillment ? You will then, if you 
wait, be like doubting Thomas, believing because 
you see. Jesus described, or rather reproved that 
class, who in his day, were slow to believe what the 
prophets had spoken. Now will you be of that 
class? You urge sinners to believe God's word. 
Set them an example worthy of imitation, and not 
fritter that word away by your traditions. That 
class of persons, you will remember were condemned 
by our Lord. Be careful that you don't unwitting- 
ly seek, or endeavor to make God's word conform to 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



21 



some creed, or tenet, or preconceived opinion which 
you have adopted, or some principle of truth, as you 
may call it. Please stop, and ask yourself whether 
you have not done so at any time, or constantly 
even, while you have read the last twenty pages. 
If you thus read, and your measuring creed, or 
tenet, or principle is erroneous, you will err also, and 
never come to the truth. But returning to our sub- 
ject. You believe in the resurrection of all man- 
kind which Jesus and the apostles taught. Then 
why not believe in the resurrection of Israel, as 
taught by God himself through his prophet ? Ac- 
cepting this as descriptive of the literal resurrection 
of all Israel, as it truly is, you cannot find a single 
phrase in the Bible which contradicts it. Search 
and see. God's mind is infinite, while ours is finite. 
You believe in the new birth as taught by our Lord 
to Nicodemus ; and yet the latter asked, " How can 
these things be ? " Did the perplexity of Mcoclemus 
change or nullify the fact ? You reply no. Neither 
will your perplexity, in any degree, modify God's 
declaration respecting Israel, when he says to them, 
4 1 will open your graves, and cause you to come up 
out of your graves, and bring you into the land of 
Israel. A new heart will I also give you, and a new 
spirit will I put within you, and I will take away the 
stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a 
heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, 
and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall 
keep my judgments and do them. And ye shall 
dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers ; and 



22 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



ye shall be my people, and I will be your God." — 
Ezek. 36 : 26-28. 

And by Jeremiah God says : " Behold, the days 
come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new cove- 
nant with the house of Israel and with the house of 
Judah : not according to the covenant I made with 
their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to 
bring them out of the land of Egypt (which my cov- 
enant they broke, although I was a husband to them, 
saith the Lord). But this shall be the covenant I 
will make with the house of Israel : after those days, 
saith the Lord, [after God has taken out a people 
from among the Gentiles,] I will put my law in their 
inward parts, and write it in their hearts ; and will 
be their God, and they shall be my people. And 
they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, 
and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, 
for they shall all know me, from the least of them 
even unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord ; for 
I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember 
their sin no more." — Jer. 31 : 31-34-. Now it is folly 
yes, worse than foolish, to say that this prophecy 
concerning Israel has ever been fulfilled, for Paul in 
Heb. 8 : 8-12, in treating of the new covenant, of 
which he says Christ is the Mediator, quotes this 
very prophecy of Jeremiah, and conclusively shows 
that it was to be fulfilled under the new covenant 
and not under the old ; and please notice that he 
was writing to the elect Hebrews, who were familiar 
with the law and the prophecies ; and for whom, if 
they were faithful, and made their calling and elec- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



23 



tion sure, God has reserved something far more glo- 
rious than the simple fulfillment of Jeremiah's proph- 
ecy, and of which we may speak hereafter. Now, as 
that prophecy could not be fulfilled till the first ad- 
vent of Jesus, the mediator and also the executor of 
the new covenant mentioned by Jeremiah, and as 
the same was not fulfilled during his abode here in 
the flesh, nor during Paul's day, for at that time the 
ten tribes, to use scriptural language, were sifted 
among the nations of the earth; and instead of its 
fulfillment afterwards, Jerusalem was destroyed by 
the Romans, nearly all of its inhabitants slaughtered, 
and the remainder of Jacob's descendants sifted 
among the nations of the earth, where we yet see 
them ; it follows that it yet remains to be fulfilled, — 
and thus it must be until the times of the Gentiles 
be fulfilled, or, in the words of James, until God has 
taken out of the Gentiles a people for his name. — 
Acts 15 : 14. Please read carefully the 7th, 8th, 9th, 
and 13th verses of the 8th chapter of Hebrews in 
this connection, — and then, as I have used the term 
"sifted," let us read the words of God respecting 
Israel, recorded in the last nine verses of Amos : 
"Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, 
O children of Israel ? saith the Lord. Have not I 
brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, and the 
Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir ? 
Behold, the eyes of the Lord God are upon the sin- 
ful kingdom, and I will destroy it off the face of the 
earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the 
house of Jacob, saith the Lord. For lo, I will com- 



24 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



mand, and I will sift the house of Israel among all 
nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not 
the least grain fall upon the earth. All the sinners 
of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The 
evil shall not overtake nor prevent us." Now at the 
time the Romans overran Palestine and destroyed 
Jerusalem, as it existed in the time of Christ, God 
did complete the destruction of the Hebrew nation, 
as a nation, from off the face of the earth, and sifted 
the remnant of it among the nations of the earth, 
where we find them yet ; as we can readily distin- 
guish them by their peculiar characteristics. But 
those composing the ten tribes are not discernable 
to us, but God knows them. History shows that 
much time has already intervened between the 
events described in the foregoing verses, and those 
described in those which immediately follow, as is 
often the case in prophecy, when, from the language 
used, one would infer that the events quickly follow 
one another — yes, eighteen hundred years have 
passed away since the destruction of Jerusalem, and 
the sifting of the J ews ; and during all that period, 
the same blindness and stupor, which Paul mentions 
so particularly, has rested upon them. But com- 
mencing with the 11th verse of Amos 9, God says, 
u In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David 
that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof, and 
I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the 
days of old, that they may possess the remnant of 
Edom, and of all the heathen which are called by my 
name saith the Lord that doeth this * * * and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



25 



I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel, 
and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit 
them : and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the 
wine thereof ; they shall also make gardens, and eat 
the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their 
land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of 
their land, which I have given them, saith the Lord 
God." This prophecy was uttered about 730 years 
before Christ. Please notice, by reference to your 
Bibles, when all the prophecies quoted, or referred 
to, were uttered. God says, "In that day I will 
raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen," &c, 
verse 11. Now we want to know, as near as possible, 
when that day, or time will come, when God will 
commence this great work. Turn to Hosea 3 : 4, 5, 
where He says : " For the children of Israel shall 
abide many days without a king, and without a 
prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, 
and without an ephod, and without teraphim." Now 
please consider how long Israel has been in that con- 
dition. Yet it is of far greater importance that Ave 
believe that God will do as he says, than to know 
the time. 

But in the fifth verse, God says, "Afterwards 
shall the children of Israel return, and seek the Lord 
their God, and David their king ; and shall fear the 
Lord and his goodness in the latter clays." Please 
notice that it is after Israel has abode a very long 
period in the state above mentioned, that they will 
again turn to the Lord, and be greatly blessed by 
him. But it will be in the latter days, God tells 



26 



NEAV TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



us. Let us now search the Scriptures, and ascertain 
what is meant by the term, latter days, and the 
equivalent term, that day, used by Amos ; and after 
that, we will turn to some others of God's prophets. 
And here suffer me to say in Christian kindness to 
you, my brother, be careful that you do not, in any 
degree despise, or disparage God's prophets, or their 
prophecies ; but rather imitate your Saviour, and his 
apostles, who referred to, and quoted those prophe- 
cies as authorities from God. In Acts 15, we find 
recorded the very important council of the apostles 
and elders of the church of Christ ; at which coun- 
cil were present Paul and Barnabas ; and then the 
apostle James used these words : " Simeon hath de- 
clared how at the first God did visit the Gentiles to 
take out of them, a people for his name. And to 
this agree the words of the prophets, as it is 
written, After this I will return, and build the taber- 
nacle of David which is fallen down ; and I will 
build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up : 
that the residue of men may seek after the Lord, 
who doeth all these things." Again Jesus, (in Luke 
21 : 24) after foretelling the destruction of Jerusa- 
lem, and the sufferings of its inhabitants, adds, "And 
Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles, 
until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." What 
does the term, residue of men here mean ? Does it 
not mean what is left. And does it not mean what 
is left of every generation after Christians are taken 
out, from the apostles' day down ? Do not Chris- 
tians constitute the people God has been, and is yet 
taking out from among the Gentiles ? 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



27 



Now turn to Rom. 11 : 25, and you find Paul say- 
ing, " For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant 
of this mystery, lest ye be wise in your own con- 
ceits, that a hardening in part hath befallen Israel, 
until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in." There- 
fore, as the Lord Jesus tells us that Jerusalem can- 
not be rebuilt till the times of the Gentiles are ful- 
filled, and we Gentiles are now having our time, by 
having the gospel preached to us, and the Holy 
Spirit also aiding us to receive it ; and as James tells 
us that it is after God has taken out a people from 
among the Gentiles, that the tabernacles of David 
are to be set up , and furthermore, as Paul tells us, 
with equal clearness, that blindness, or hardness of 
heart must rest upon Israel till the fullness of the 
Gentiles comes in, thus preventing them from turn- 
ing to the Lord, it follows, that the foregoing proph- 
ecies of the old Scriptures respecting Israel have not 
yet been fulfilled ; and indeed cannot be, until the 
times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. So from the com- 
bined testimony of the Saviour and that of James 
and Paul, we easily perceive the exact period in 
God's due time when Israel shall again be restored 
to favor and be saved. 

But now I will proceed to show that it is through 
Jesus, the blessed forevermore, and by him also, that 
this great work is to be wrought for Israel. But, as 
you read, please refrain from reasoning as did the 
Hebrews, when they said, " Our bones are dried, and 
our hope is lost, we are cut off from our parts." — 
Ezek. 37 : 11, — or like Martha, who said, " Lord, 



28 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



by this time he stinketh ; for he hafch been dead four 
days. 7 ' — John 11 : 39. But hold fast to the decla- 
rations of Jesus, the Lord, "For with God all things 
are possible. And the gates of Hades shall not pre- 
vail against it." Let us in all cases seek to apply, or 
rather seek to let every portion of the Scriptures 
apply where, or to whom it belongs , for there is cer- 
tainly a great misapplication of Scripture by many 
persons. In the last verse of the 23d chapter of 
Matthew are found the following words of Jesus: 
" For I say unto you ye shall not see me henceforth, 
till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the 
name of ihe Lord." These are the closing words of 
an address, by our Lord, to the multitudes about 
him, and also of his last address to the J ews ; as you 
will perceive his subsequent addresses were to his 
disciples only. In truth, I think we may safely say, 
that with those words closed his ministry to the 
Jews, for they are immediately preceded by the 
words, " Behold your house is left unto you deso- 
late." Please read the entire discourse, commencing 
with the chapter, and a few lines of the next chap- 
ter, and you will perceive that it was also delivered 
in the temple ; and from what follows, we have every 
reason to believe it was his last public discourse. 
Jesus knew that his ministry to Israel was closed, 
that his crucifixion was near, that he had finished 
the work which his Father had given him to do ; and 
was about to return to the Father, from whence he 
came. If you say, that he was seen after his resur- 
rection — yes, that is true ; but it was not by the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



29 



people, but by his disciples ; for it was to the latter 
alone that he manifested himself, " at various times." 
Now we have no reason to believe that between the 
time of his uttering the foregoing words, and that of 
his death, the Jews ever applied those words to 
Jesus ; for we know that, on the contrary, they took 
him, and put him to death. And as they never saw 
him after his crucifixion, and have never believed in 
him, blindness yet resting upon them, " till the full- 
ness of the Gentiles be come in," it follows that it 
must be at some future period, that those Jews whom 
Jesus addressed, will say to him, " Blessed is he that 
cometh in the name of the Lord." And one will 
readily see from the context, that the declaration of 
Jesus applied to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, at 
least, as they were the ones who had seen and heard 
him so often in their beautiful temple and city ; and 
it is, therefore, to them whom he then addressed, 
that the words, " Ye shall not see me henceforth, or 
again, till ye say, Blessed is he that cometh in the 
name of the Lord," particularly apply. 

Again, it is evident, that they, who apply that 
language of welcome to Christ, must first believe in 
him, and we know that the Jews have not yet be- 
lieved in Jesus , and furthermore, we know that at 
the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, the 
great mass of the Jews therein perished, as Jesus 
had foretold they would, in the following words : 
" Now there were some present at that very season, 
who told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate 
had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered 



30 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



and said unto them, Think ye that these Galileans 
were sinners above all the Galileans, because they 
have suffered these things ? I tell you, j\ T a}~, but ex- 
cept ye repent, ye shall all, in like manner, perish." 
Those words were spoken to the Jews, and we know 
that the} r did not repent, and that, at the destruc- 
tion of Jerusalem, they were slaughtered by the Ro- 
mans, the few Christians therein, with perhaps a few 
others, being the only ones, who escaped, which they 
did in pursuance of the previous instructions of the 
Lord Jesus. And here allow me to say, that was 
the destruction the Lord referred to, and to no other 
— the words, by the comparison, and the result fore- 
told, being applicable to the Jews alone, and to none 
others ; having no reference whatever to what is 
termed future punishment ; and there is a future 
punishment. 

Yes, those Jews perished in their sins. And those 
Jews were, and are yet some of those broken off 
branches of the good olive tree, — and broken off, 
that you and I might be grafted in. — Rom. 11 : IT. 
Therefore, let us be very humble and thankful, and 
earnestly desire that they may reeeiA'e the choicest 
blessings which God has in store for them. Yes, let 
us, with Paul, believe that God is able to graft them 
in again, although their " bones are dried, and they 
are cut off from their parts." 

Now let us turn to Luke 4th, and read from the 
16th to the 22nd verse: " And he came to Nazareth 
when he had been brought up ; and as his custom 
was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



81 



day, and stood up to read. And there was delivered 
unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when 
he had opened the book, he found the place where it 
was written, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, 
because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to 
the poor ; he hath sent me to heal the broken heart- 
ed, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recov- 
ering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them 
that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the 
Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again 
to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all 
them in the synagogue were fastened on him. And 
he began to say to them, This day is this Scripture 
fulfilled in your ears." This is a quotation from 
Isaiah 61 : 1, 2. And we know from the Lord's own 
words, " This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your 
ears," that he is the person spoken of and described 
by the prophet. But the prophet tells us much more 
of what Jesus will do than what Matthew represents 
Jesus to have quoted. But it is particularly grati- 
fying that we perceive from this prophecy, that it is 
by, and through Jesus Christ the Lord, that the 
Israelites are to be gathered from among the nations 
where God has sifted them, and restored to the land 
of their ancestors, &c. For the prophet adds "That 
he is also anointed, to appoint unto them that mourn 
in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil 
of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the 
spirit of heaviness ; that they might be called Trees 
of Righteousness, The Planting of the Lord, that he 
might be glorified." Then is added, "And they 



32 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the 
former desolations, and they shall repair the waste 
cities, the desolations of many generations," verse 
4. Now, does not the last declaration apply with 
the fullest force to Palestine ? Have not Palestine 
and her cities been a waste eighteen hundred years, 
or many generations ? Yes, it is Jesus who, in the 
days of his flesh, wept over Jerusalem, who will ef- 
fect this glorious work for Israel. Commencing with 
the 62d chapter, God says, " For Zion's sake, I will 
not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will 
not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as 
brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that 
burnetii. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteous- 
ness, and all kings thy glory : and thou shalt be 
called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord 
shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in 
the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand 
of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed For- 
saken, neither shall thy land any more be termed 
Desolate ; but thou shalt be called Hepzibah, (my 
delight is in her), and thy land Beulah, (married) ; 
For the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall 
be married." But please read the whole of the 60th, 
61st and 62nd of Isaiah ; and I hope, if you have 
not already perceived it, that y ou will now begin to 
see more clearly how Jesus will hereafter be the 
glory of his people Israel, and how he has been set 
for the falling of many in Israel, and their rising 
again, as foretold by Simeon. My brother, which is 
it that rises ? Is it the person who stands erect, or 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



33 



is it the one that has fallen ? Certainly, yon will 
not say that the few Jews who believed in Christ, in 
Paul and Peter's time, were the fallen ; then it fol- 
lows that it was the unbelievers. But if you yet 
doubt, turn to 1 Peter, 2 : 7, where the apostle says, 
" For you therefore, who believe, is he precious ; but 
for such as disbelieve, the stone which the builders 
rejected, the same was made the head of the corner ; 
and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence ; for 
they stumble at the word, being disobedient, where- 
unto they also were appointed." Mark that Peter 
says, they were appointed to this. And thus, Israel 
has been stumbling and falling upon that stone and 
rock of offence to them, during eighteen centuries, 
and will do so, and Jerusalem will also be trodden 
under foot by the Gentiles, until our time, or the 
period allotted to us, has been fulfilled. Therefore, 
let us, with all humility and gratitude, work while 
our day lasts ; for certainly, eighteen hundred years 
having passed since the good news of salvation was 
first preached to the Gentiles, our time must be near- 
ing its close. Don't let any one be foolishly saying, 
that since the apostles fell asleep, "all things continue 
as they were." Don't say that the branches of 
Israel, broken off to make room for you, God has 
forgotten ; for " The Lord is not slack concerning 
his promise, as some count slackness ; but is long- 
suffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should 
perish, but that all should come to repentance * * 
and account that the long suffering of our Lord is 
salvation."— 2 Pet. 3 : 9-15. 



34 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



At this point I want to call attention especially 
and directly to the fact, that the reference of Jesus 
to the prophecy of Isaiah respecting himself in con- 
nection with Israel, and saying to the people, Luke 
4 : 6-21, that at that time, " To-day," the first part 
of the prophecy was being fulfilled, shows that the 
remainder of the prophecy had not been ; for the 
prophecy itself shows that it was to be wrought, or 
fulfilled by the Saviour; and furthermore, Jesus had 
just commenced his glorious work of salvation, when 
he uttered the words, " To-day hath this Scripture 
been fulfilled in your ears." And the time and man- 
ner in which James, (Acts 15), refers to, and speaks 
of the prophecy of Amos, shows that that prophecy 
had not been fulfilled, and indeed, cannot be, until 
God has taken a people, for his name, from among 
the Gentiles. And if those two prophecies have not 
yet been fulfilled, then it follows that all the proph- 
ecies which foretell the same events, have not, and 
that they are all corroberative of one another. 



CHAPTER II. 



THE VALUE OF THE TRUTH, AND THE TERMS UPON 
WHICH WE MAY HAVE IT. 



•SjtT would really seem that the mass of Christians 
jl care but little to understand any more of God's 
Jg word, than what is needed in order to be saved ; 
or, in ordinary language, " get to heaven," and es- 
pecially to keep out of hell — and the latter is a very 
important consideration. But Christians don't seem 
to realize, that the more they love the truth as it is 
in Christ, and consequently seek for it, and obey it, 
the better they will be fitted for heaven and unfitted 
for hell ; for it is a fact, that in the great and last 
day we will all go to our own, or our like — Indeed, 
that is the case here on earth — the good with the 
good — drunkards with drunkards — thieves with 
thieves — gamblers with gamblers, etc. Jesus prays, 
in his prayer for his followers, John 17 : 17, that we 
may all be sanctified by, or through the truth ; and 
we are told by one of his apostles, that we are sanc- 
tified by obeying the truth — And we are also told, 
Heb. 6 : 1, 2, to leave the first principles of the doc- 
trines of Christ, such as those of baptism, laying on 



36 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judg- 
ment, and go on to perfection — and the apostle adds, 
" And this will we do, if God permit." Now the doc- 
trine of Christ is the gospel, and the gospel is the 
truth, which is composed of principles, and those 
truth-principles are full of sanctifying power, which 
is perfecting power ; and consequently, none of those 
principles are valueless, but of great value, each in 
its proper order and place ; and thus each should be 
desired and sought for by all believers. Each gos- 
pel truth has its office to fill in perfecting and pre- 
paring a man for the position which God would have 
him fill in His church and kingdom — yet the mass 
of professing Christians only desire the first princi- 
ples of the gospel of Christ, and seek not the higher 
principles, which are really the pearls of the gospel, 
and thus are distinguished from the first principles, 
which Paul tells us to leave, not forget, such as bap- 
tism, laying on of hands, etc., and constitute the real 
pearls which J esus meant, when he said to his disci- 
ples, — " Cast not your pearls before swine, lest they 
trample them under their feet, and turn again and 
rend you." For there are indeed some swinish pro- 
fessors, I fear ; and as the apostles spoke of such in 
their day, we have no reason to question their exist- 
ence at the present time. 

Jesus says of the true spiritual church, — " Ye are 
the light of the world, and the salt of the earth." 
But he adds, " But if the salt have lost its savor, 
wherewith shall it," (the earth, or rather the people 
of the earth), "be salted? it is thenceforth good for 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. o"* 

nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under 
foot by men." Now this is always the case when 
the church loses her spiritual life and power ; and 
she always loses that life and power when she loses 
the truth. And she loses the truth, when she loses 
her love for it ; for when we cease to love the truth, 
then we cease to seek for it ; as a man seeks what he 
loves or desires most. If I should say to some of 
you who profess to desire heaven more than all else, 
that it is not so, you might consider me impudent, 
or at least, very much mistaken ; but if you are really 
sincere, then why do you not seek heaven by the way 
of the cross, which is the way, and the only way 
taught by the Lord Jesus ? 

First, I will ask, is it necessary, in order to inherit 
heaven, to become a disciple of the Lord Jesus 
Christ? To this question, you will reply, yes; that 
is, if you even posssess but a small share of Christian 
intelligence. A disciple signifies a learner, or pupil, 
and consequently, if you are Jesus' disciple, then 
Jesus is your teacher. But Jesus prescribes certain 
terms, or conditions, upon which you may be admit- 
ted to his school, and upon which you may remain 
there ; for we must continue to comply with these 
conditions, as one can readily perceive from Christ's 
own words, if he will, or be expelled. Jesus gives 
the conditions of discipleship as follows : " Who- 
ever doth not bear his cross, and come after me can- 
not be my disciple." And then after illustrating his 
declaration by the case of a man attempting to build 
a tower without first estimating the cost, &c, he 



38 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



acids : " So therefore, whosoever there be of you 
that renounceth not all that he hath, he cannot be 
my disciple" — that is, he cannot be taught by me, or 
learn of me." Please read from Luke, verses 25 to 
35, chapter 14. And in Luke 9 : 62, Jesus tells us, 
that " No man, having put his hand to the plow, and 
looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." And 
as he tells us in Luke 14 : 26, that we are to compara- 
tively hate this present life, or every thing connected 
with, it which in any manner conflicts with our de- 
votion to God, in order to have him as our teacher, 
and thus learn of him, it follows that we must turn 
our backs upon every thing in this life, however 
lovely or attractive ; and furthermore, that we must 
not afterwards be looking back to them. These are 
the terms of admission and of continuance in the 
school of Christ. And this agrees with the words of 
Jesus in John 12 : 24-26. " Verily, verily, I say 
unto you, except a grain of wheat fall into the earth 
and die, it abideth by itself and alone ; but if it die, 
it beareth much fruit. He that loveth his life loseth 
it, and he that hateth his life in this world, shall 
keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me let 
him follow me ; and where I am there shall also my 
servant be. If any man serve me, him will my 
Father honor." Now we know that a grain of wheat 
never produces any thing until it dies ; neither do 
professors of religion till they are dead to the world. 
Until that time they are not taught by Jesus through 
the operations of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy 
Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, Jesus promised to send to 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



39 



guide us into all truth ; and it is by the presence 
and operations of the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus calls 
the Comforter, that Jesus is always, and will be 
always present with those who truly love him, teach- 
ing and guiding them even unto the end of the age, 
or present dispensation. Matt. 28 : 20. John 16 : 
7, 12-15 ; 14 : 26. 

For a number of years I have been accustomed to 
say, that if any one wished to progress in the knowl- 
edge of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, he must have 
an honest heart towards God. And that kind of a 
heart is one where the resolution is formed and estab- 
lished to seek, know, do and suffer the will of God. 
And if one is truly sincere in this resolution, and 
strives to keep it, although he may, through the 
weakness of the flesh, stumble and even fall at first, 
as does the natural infant when first trying to walk, 
God, our heavenly Father, will readily forgive him, 
if he truly repent, and confess his sins. — 1 John 1 : 
9. Yes, God forgives with a love as much greater 
than a mother's love, as He is greater than we. In 
truth, God is the source of a mother's love, and of 
all other true affection. And here, I would say to 
the unconverted man and woman, please give the 
last idea its proper place in your mind, and it may 
tend to draw you towards the source of true love, as 
you are delighting in the love of your little child, or 
as your mind reverts back to the disinterested love 
of your mother, whom perhaps, you expect to see no 
more on the shores of time. For as Paul tells us, 
Acts 17 : 28, 29, we are God's offspring, and he loves 



40 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



us ; and don't let any one make you believe, (neither 
man, or devil), that God loves you less, because he 
gave his first born Son to redeem you from death ; 
but speedily avail yourself of so great a salvation. 

But in order to have and retain an honest heart 
towards God, we must proceed in the manner 
pointed out by his Son and his apostles — First, we 
have to humble ourselves before God our Creator, 
as does a dutiful little child before its natural parent, 
and remain humble, according to the words of our 
Saviour to the adults about him : " Verily I say unto 
you, Except ye turn and become as little children, 
ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. 
Whosoever, therefore, shall humble himself as this 
little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom 
of heaven."— Matt. 18 : 2, 3, 4, 10. Again, in Mark 
10 : 15, He says : " Verily I say unto you, Whoso- 
ever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little 
child, he shall in no wise enter therein." So the 
sooner we feel our utter dependence upon God for 
every good thing, both spiritual and temporal, as a 
little child feels its dependence upon an earthly pa- 
rent, the better it is for us. But lest Satan should 
get an idea in here to the effect that in humbling 
yourself before God, you would also do so before 
men, suffer me to say that such is not the case. Be- 
hold Peter and the other apostles when arraigned 
before the council, governors and kings, — they treat- 
ed such rulers with the respect due to their position, 
and nothing more. When asked, " By what power, 
or in what name have ye done this ? " Peter, filled 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



with the Holy Ghost, said to the Council : " Ye rul- 
ers of the people and elders of Israel, if we this day 
be examined of the good deed done to the impotent 
man, by what means he is made whole, be it known 
unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by 
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye cru- 
cified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him 
doth this man stand here before you whole. This is 
the stone which was set at naught of you builders, 
which is become the head of the corner. Neither is 
there salvation in any other ; for there is none other 
name under heaven given among men, whereby we 
must be saved." — Acts 4 : 9-12. And when one is 
filled with the Holy Spirit as was Peter at that time, 
we see in him a safe example to follow, and a correct 
illustration of the influence of the Christian religion. 
But we cannot humble ourselves too deeply before 
God, as the following declarations of Jesus and his 
apostles plainly indicate. And we should particu- 
larly notice that Jesus himself has set us an exam- 
ple for our imitation. 

First we hear Jesus saying, " Take my yoke upon 
you and learn of me ; for I am meek and lowly in 
heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls. — Matt. 
11 : 28, 29/ And in Matt. 23 : 8-12— « Be not ye 
called Rabbi ; for one is your master, even Christ ; 
and all ye are brethren. And call no man your 
father upon the earth ; for one is your Father, which 
is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters ; for one 
is your master, even Christ. * But he that is greatest 
among you, shall be your servant. And whosoever 



42 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



shall exalt himself, shall be abased ; and he that shall 
humble himself, shall be exalted." Let all who have 
D.D. attached to their names observe what the Lord 
says in regard to being called, or calling others 
Rabbi ; for Doctor of Divinity is the same, or an- 
swers to Rabbi, — and let the Roman priesthood no- 
tice that Jesus forbids our being called father, and 
gives us the reason for observing this injunction, as 
he also does the other. Now hear Peter — 1 Pet. 5 : 
5-7, — " Yea, all of you gird yourselves with humility 
to serve one another ; for God resisteth the proud, 
but giveth grace unto the humble. Humble your- 
selves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that 
he may exalt you in due time." — And James says, — 
" God resists the proud, but giveth grace to the 
humble." — James 4 : 6. — And the whole ten6r of the 
gospel of Christ is, that the road of exaltation is the 
path of humility before God, but not before man, as 
the adversary would have you believe ; for he always 
seeks to make the path to salvation and true glory 
as objectionable to man as possible. But resist Sa- 
tan properly, and he will flee from you , but don't 
think he won't return, or you will be taken by sur- 
prise, and be roughly handled. Now it is nothing 
more than reasonable, that we, who are privileged, 
by the loving favor of God our Creator, to become 
the recipients of his glory, should tread the path that 
our Saviour trod, and lead the life that he led, and 
suffer as he suffered, and seek our happiness where, 
and as he sought his, to the extent of our ability, and 
according to the will of God, and consequently ac- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



43 



cording to the teachings of the gospel of our Lord 
and Redeemer. And that you may have some con- 
ception of the Saviour's course and extreme humil- 
ity, read the following — Phil. 2 : 5-8, — " Let this 
mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus ; who, 
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to 
be equal with God : but made himself of no reputa- 
tion, and took upon him the form of a servant, and 
was made in the likeness of men : and being found 
in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became 
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." 
Think you that it was no cross for the Saviour to 
abandon the glory that he enjoyed with the Father 
before the world existed, and endure persecution 
and privation and death in place thereof ? For Je- 
sus mentions the glory that he had with the Father, 
in the 17th chapter of John, verses 5 and 24, in his 
prayer for his disciples. Therefore Paul says to 
Christians, in the Phil. 1 : 29, — " Because to you it 
hath been granted, in the behalf of Christ, not only 
to believe on him, but also to suffer in his behalf." 
Of course, this means when suffering comes in the 
path of duty. But we are to leave all that with God 
to order in harmony with his infinite love and wis- 
dom ; and not shrink from duty by reason of fear. 
Now, reader, whether you are a professor of religion 
or not, do you now resolve to give up all, or do you 
now give yourselves, including the anticipated, and 
also the present pleasures and happiness of this life ? 
and the sources thereof, as you have viewed them, 
to God, trusting to him to measure out to you dur- 



44 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



ing this short life, such joy and happiness as he, in 
his infinite wisdom, love and power, thinks best to 
bestow ? Before pressing a reply to the question, I 
will first offer some suggestions to aid your faith. 

1st. That whether we do, or do not consent, or 
yield to God's will, yet He has us entirely under his 
control, soul, mind, body and spirit ; and having 
made us, and thus perfectly comprehending our 
whole physical, mental and moral system, he can 
make us think and do, believe and disbelieve, to love 
and hate when and as He wills. Thus it follows, that 
operating upon, or in other words working our minds 
which he has made, as a man would run a machine 
which he has constructed, God can make us think 
that our performance of certain acts, would contrib- 
ute very much to our success and happiness, while 
the same would produce an opposite result. 

2nd. That God has not only this planet and all its 
sources of happiness to us wholly under his control 
and at his disposal, but also those of the entire uni- 
verse, to be bestowed upon whom he will, and to be 
withheld from those whom he deems unworthy. 

Thus it follows that, at any time he wishes, our 
heavenly Father can seal up all the well-springs of 
onr happiness, or any number of them, and open 
them again at his pleasure. Therefore, it follows 
that we are utterly dependent upon the great Author 
of our existence, not only for that existence, but also 
for all the happiness accompanying it ; and that God 
is the infinite reservoir of all our happiness both in 
this transitory life and in the life to come. And it is 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



45 



of the greatest importance to us that we perceive with 
all possible clearness of vision, that every creature and 
thing which, by man, are generally considered sources 
of happiness, are only channels, by which happiness 
reaches us from the infinite author of every good. 
Now, if any man believes there is a God, and further- 
more, believes that God is the creator of the uni- 
verse, how can he deny the correctness of the fore- 
going propositions ? For it does not matter one jot 
whether God created the universe, or the world, in 
its present form, within any particular period of time, 
or not ; or whether he put it in the process of crea- 
tion, and left evolution, so called, to effect the bal- 
ance of the work. For Omniscience knew what the 
result would be, and also what it will hereafter be, 
far better than the most skillful chemist can antici- 
pate what may be the result of any chemical combi- 
nation of his own ; as such combination is frequently 
subject to some unexpected influence ; while the 
great Creator not only knows beforehand, but con- 
trols all influences. Therefore, with him there are 
no contingencies. The Bible tells us that God is 
love : and furthermore, " That as a father pitieth his 
child, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him." But 
God in a far greater degree loves those who love him. 
And if we love Jesus, his Son, then we love God, 
and God especially loves us. And Jesus gives us 
the test in regard to whether we love him as follows: 
" He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, 
lie it is that loveth me ; and he that loveth me, shall 
be loved by my Father, and I will love him, and 



46 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



manifest myself unto him." — John 14 : 21. In this 
one verse we are taught two things of the very great- 
est importance. First, that if we keep the com- 
mandments of Jesus, then we love him. Second, 
that if we love Jesus, then God especially loves us. 
And again Jesus says, John 16 : 27, " For the Father 
himself loveth you, because you have loved me, and 
have believed that I came forth from the Father." 
And in Rom. 8 : 28, we are told that " all things work 
together for good to them who love God." Mark, 
there is no such promise to them who don't. And 
that Jesus loves his followers is abundantly evidenced 
by his words to Paul, or Saul, when he struck him to 
the earth on his way to Damascus, — for Jesus says 
to him, " Saul Saul, why persecutest thou me ? " 
showing that the true followers of Jesus are one with 
himself ; and of this fact, there is an abundance of 
proof elsewhere. But remember that Jesus says, 
Matt. 11 : 37-39, " He that loveth father or mother 
more than me, is not worthy of me ; and he that lov- 
eth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of 
me. And he that doth not take his cross and follow 
after me, is not worthy of me. He that flndeth his 
life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life for my sake, 
shall find it." And in Luke 14 : 33, " So therefore, 
whosoever he be of you that renounceth not all that 
he hath, he cannot be my disciple." And in John 
8 : 12, " I am the light of the world ; he that follow- 
eth me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have 
the light of life." Please notice the words, " light 
of life." That is what we need ; and we can only 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



47 



have it by complying with the teachings of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. And if we are without that 
light, we fall and perish. And Jesus tells us that if 
we seek to climb up to heaven by any other way 
than that which he points out, we shall be treated as 
thieves and robbers. In Matt. 6 : 24, he tells us that 
we cannot serve God and mammon ; and I really fear 
that a very large proportion of professing Christians, 
are endeavoring to do that very thing, and conse- 
quently they are full of darkness. 

Having presented to you the foregoing truths and 
words of encouragement, I now, in substance, re- 
peat the question, Do you now yield yourself and 
whatever you now have, and whatover you may have 
and be in this life, to God your Creator, to be ordered, 
directed and disposed of in harmony with his will ? 
And this question is for some believers as well as 
others. And may our heavenly Father enable you to 
decide in the affirmative. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE NATURE AND CHARACTER OF GOD. 



J SHALL now say a few words in regard to the 
nature and character of God, — and first, suffer 
me to say, in all kindness, that the nature and 
character of God, for centuries, have been mis- 
represented by very many religious teachers, who 
have viewed him according to their religious educa- 
tion, and have described him in accordance with that 
view. And although such teachers have read to 
their hearers from the Bible, that God is love, yet 
they have so explained that Bible, and especially the 
gospel of Jesus, that they have caused their hearers 
to feel and believe, that our heavenly Father was, 
in a very great degree, of an opposite character ; and 
as a very natural result, have greatly impaired man's 
confidence, or faith, in God, which faith and confi- 
dence Jesus ever labored to confirm, both by word 
and act ; such as healing the sick, feeding the hun- 
gry, and exhorting his disciples to trust our heaven- 
ly Father to supply even their temporal wants ; say- 
ing, " Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have 
need of these things." Telling them that even the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



49 



hairs of their heads were numbered, — that not a 
sparrow fell to the ground without Him ; and then 
adding, u Ye are of more value than many sparrows." 
— Matt. 10 : 29, 30. And such a God, who alone is 
the true God, and the only God, is a very different 
one from the so-called God of those persons who say, 
that God having once created the universe, and once 
set it in motion, now lets it run on entirely without 
his interference. 

And the true God is also quite different from the 
God of that class who say, that God, indeed, exer- 
cises a supervision of his universe, but he don't in- 
terfere with what is termed small matters, and scarce- 
ly notices them. But wise men know that it is ex- 
tremely difficult, if not quite impossible, to distin- 
guish between what are usually termed small and 
great acts, on account of what has resulted from 
some one event which in itself seemed to be so triv- 
ial. 

And then there is a class of professing believers, 
or professed believers, who hold that God does su- 
pervise the universe, and in a general way, superin- 
tends with fatherly care, and special favor, the 
Church of Christ, and hears and answers prayers 
for general purposes, which are In harmony with 
the fixed and eternal purposes of his will ; but deny 
all special or direct interference of God for the re- 
lief of his children, while they tabernacle here in 
the flesh. The latter class say that, to be sure, in 
Christ's and the apostles' days, God did thus inter- 
fere for his glory, and to establish the truths of the 



50 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



gospel ; and that having been done, the Christians 
of this day must move along the best they can, 
under the general plan of salvation, without any 
particular or special aid from their heavenly Father 
in answer to prayer ; although Jesus says, — " If ye 
shall ask anything of the Father, in my name, he 
will give it you." — John 16 : 23. But the latter 
class say, — " Well, that don't mean exactly as it reads 
— it means something else." Yes, in the very same 
way, and by the same system of interpretation, — "it 
means something else " — the faith of the church has 
been undermined for many centuries. For instance, 
the church of Rome, when she became so corrupt in 
trying to serve both God and mammon, that the 
plain and direct teachings of the Bible constantly 
interfered with both her inclinations and practice, 
actually forbade men to read the teachings of Jesus, 
and put them to death for either publishing or'read- 
ing God's word, and set up its own traditions in its 
place. Think you that it was all effected at once? 
No, but by degrees, step by step, little by little. 
First misinterpreting one passage of Scripture, and 
then another. For one lie generally paves the way 
for another ; as the establishing of one truth-princi- 
ple prepares the way for another. And thus it is 
with every religious sect which has one false princi- 
ple in its creed ; and also with an individual. In 
fact, it is in the mind of the individual where the 
mischief arises. For instance, when the doctrine of 
the eternal punishment of the impenitent is firmly 
established in your mind as a truth-principle, or as 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



51 



the truth ; then when }~ou read the Scriptures, you 
make them conform, by the explanation you give 
them, or the application you make of them, to that 
preconceived principle. Again, if the doctrine of 
the final salvation of all men is in like manner es- 
tablished in your mind, then when you read the 
Scriptures, they are made to conform with the latter 
principle ; and consequently, when a man once 
adopts a false principle, and holds it as a true one, 
that principle, in fact, holds him, and he must walk 
according to, or in harmony with it j for he must 
not violate it, if he considers it correct. For instance, 
and simply for an illustration, substitute some false 
principle in mathematics, and where does it lead 
you, but to greater errors. Thus it was that Jesus 
said to the Jews that they made void the word of 
God by their traditions, — Mark 6 : 6-13, — and Paul 
warns us to beware of the same, saying, — "Take 
heed lest there be any one that maketh spoil (or 
merchandise) of you through his philosophy, and 
vain deceit, after the tradition of men," &c. — Col. 2 : 
8. And such are the creeds of the different religious 
sects. Not that I would say that such creeds are 
entirely false or erroneous, as I do not consider them 
so ; but every intelligent Christian will say, that un- 
less such creed entirely harmonizes with the Gospel 
of Christ, then it is somewhat erroneous ; and con- 
sequently in that degree false. Therefore, I would 
respectfully suggest for your consideration the fol- 
lowing declaration from quite an able preacher, viz. : 
"That if a person would understand the Scriptures, 



52 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



he must first forget all he knew about them." Or 
in other words, he must abandon or forget all his pre- 
conceived opinions in regard to what they teach, and 
start anew. This course, or plan, I fully approve ; 
that a person may proceed unfettered and untram- 
meled by erroneous and preconceived views. And 
some of our early views in life are not only erron- 
eous, but exceedingly tenacious ; and actually warp 
our judgment, and thus lead us from the truth, and 
cause us to reject the truth when it clashes with such 
erroneous views. 

Now let us proceed in the manner proposed, to 
examine the gospel of our Redeemer; but please 
remember, as I have before said, that it must be done 
with an honest heart towards God — entire submis- 
sion to his will — and furthermore, remember, that 
without faith, it is impossible to please God. And 
thirdly, please remember that the natural man re- 
ceiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for 
they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know 
them, because they are spiritually discerned,'' or 
examined, — 1 Cor. 2 : 14. Therefore, let us pro- 
ceed with faith, humility and also prayer for the 
Holy Spirit to aid us. 

In regard to who Jesus of Nazareth was and yet is, 
we find clearly stated in Luke 1 : 34, 35, in reply to 
the question of Mary : " How shall this be, seeing I 
know not a man ? " as follows : "And the angel an- 
swered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come 
upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall over- 
shadow thee ; wherefore, also that which is to be 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



53 



born, shall be called the Son of God." From which it 
is very evident, beyond successful contradiction that 
Jesus was not begotten by man, but through the in- 
finite power of God, and thus was indeed the Son of 
God. In chap. 2 : 26-29, we find the prophet Sim- 
eon recognizing Jesus as the Lord's anointed, and in 
4 : 9-12, when Satan says, If thou art the Son of 
God," etc., etc., Jesus replies : " It is said, Thou shalt 
not tempt the Lord thy God." In 3 : 21, 22, we hear 
the following from heaven addressed to him, — " Thou 
art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased;" 
and in John 14 : 6-11, we hear Jesus saying : " He 
that hath seen me hath seen the Father ; how sayest 
thou, show us the Father ? Believest thou not that 
I am in the Father and the Father in me ? The 
words that I say unto you, I speak not of myself, but 
the Father abiding in me doeth his works." 

The last eight words, especially, when we properly 
feel their import, should greatly increase our faith in 
God, and in his love to man, because it may be truly 
said of Jesus, that all his life was a life of love to 
man, constantly manifested during his ministry by 
his works of love. But notice, that, in those eight 
words, Jesus tells us plainly, it^was the Father abid- 
ing in him, who did those works of love to his 
creatures, such as casting out evil spirits, healing the 
sick, raising the dead, and uttering words of affec- 
tion, instruction and encouragement to all who would 
receive them. Yes, God himself was constantly 
speaking and acting, and thus manifesting himself, 
his nature and character through the person of the 



54 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Lord Jesus. I especially desire that you may com- 
prehend and receive this great fundamental truth of 
the gospel of Jesus, that you may indeed have child- 
like confidence in God, who is love. For allow me 
to say in all kindness, that there is a great deal of 
preaching, so called, which has a tendency to con- 
ceal this glorious fact, rather than to manifest or re- 
veal it. Therefore, Jesus might very properly say, 
" I am the way, and the truth, and the life." And, 
as God had so appointed it from the foundation of 
the world, add, " And no man cometh to the Father 
but through me." — Rev. 13:8; Matt. 25 : 34 ; John 
17 : 24. If you have not already seen it, I hope that 
you will now perceive how Paul could say of Jesus, 
" For in him clwelleth all of the fullness of - the God- 
head bodily. " — Col. 2 : 9. But in verse 8, Paul sounds 
a note of warning to all believers, in the following 
language : " Take heed lest there shall be any one 
that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy 
and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the 
rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." Yes, 
those words of Paul yet warn us to take heed, and 
beware of that class of religious teachers who are 
numerous in our day, and not seeing God in Christ, 
yet wise in their own conceits, by their teachings, 
lead men away from God, instead of to him, and 
also conceal God from their view. Their religious 
belief is not the belief of the apostles, and conse- 
quently they have not the same gospel which the 
apostles had, and preached ; and as they do not have 
it, they cannot preach it. I ask, have they the lan- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



55 



guage of the apostles ? Do they plainly tell you 
that in Jesus of Nazareth dwells the fullness of the 
Godhead bodily ? Do they plainly tell you, and ad- 
here to it, that whoever saw Jesus saw the Father ? 
No, on the contrary, if they should use the expression, 
they would at once proceed to fritter away the force 
of it by their own teachings and explanations ; for 
instance, by teaching you that he was, indeed, the 
most remarkable religious teacher that ever lived, 
and taught the purest code of ethics that has ever 
been presented to man. And some of them might 
dare to say that he was endowed with the largest 
share of God's Spirit, and thus, in the greatest possi- 
ble degree, resembled the Father. But when they 
reach the last position, they approach very dangerous 
ground for their doctrine ; for the simple questions 
are then asked : If Jesus was so endowed with the 
Spirit of the Father, which certainly includes wis- 
dom, truth and understanding, why do you not re- 
ceive and believe his teachings, and also those of the 
apostles in rsgard to the character of J esus, and who 
he was ? And why do you say that Jesus was be- 
gotten by Joseph, when the scriptures, which you 
say are true, tell us that he was begotten by the 
Holy Spirit, and when Jesus always speaks of God 
as his Father, Luke 2 : 49, never recognizing Joseph 
as such in fact ? How could he be Joseph's son, and 
say, " Before Abraham was, I am ? " John 8 : 58. 
And why does he speak of the glory which he had 
with the Father " before the world was ? " — John 
17 : 5. Yes, such questions are more than difficult 



56 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



for the unbeliever to answer. But note the follow- 
ing language uttered by the disciples of Jesus re- 
specting him in whom they believed. And please 
remember, that, as Peter declares, they preached the 
gospel by the power of the Holy Ghost sent down 
from heaven. 

We read, John 1 : 10, " He was in the world, and 
the world was made by him, and the ivorld knew 
him not." In Col. 1 .: 15-18, Paul says of Jesus, 
that he " Is the image of the invisible God, the first 
born of all creation ; for in him were all things cre- 
ated, in the heavens and upon the ^arth, things visi- 
ble, and things invisible, whether thrones, or domin- 
ions, or principalities, or powers ; all things have 
been created through him, and unto him, and he is 
before all things, and in him all things consist, or 
hold together." Will this language apply, or can it, 
truthfully, be applied to any other person but Jesus, 
the true Son of God ? Again, Jesus while tarrying 
here in the flesh, or the Father dwelling in Jesus, 
did not hesitate to forgive sins, and also received ' 
homage and worship from men, his creatures ; so 
that the Jews, not knowing Christ, naturally said, 
" Who can forgive sins but God alone ? Who is 
this that speaketh blasphemies?" — Luke 5 : 21. 
See John 9 : 38. But in Matt. 22 : 41-46, is an in- 
teresting and very conclusive conversation between 
Jesus and the Pharisees of his day upon this exceed- 
ingly important question : " Now while the Phari- 
sees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a 
question, saying, what think ye of the Christ? 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



57 



Whose son is he ? They say unto him, The son of 
David. He saith unto them, How then doth David 
in the Spirit call him Lord, saying, The Lord said 
unto my Lord, sit thou on my right hand, till I put 
thine enemies underneath thy feet ? If David then 
calleth him Lord, how is he his son ? And no man 
was able to answer him a word," &c. 

Please notice that Jesus says David uttered these 
words in the spirit, — so there is no denying their 
truthfulness, — but in addition to that, Jesus quotes 
them as true. Now we know the Pharisees were not 
a modest class of men ; but did they not manifest 
good sense and discretion by their silence? Yet 
they with the scribes constituted the learned of the 
nation, and were familiar with the Scriptures ; but 
they, as we know, like many Pharisees of this day, 
looked upon Jesus as the son of the carpenter, Jo- 
seph , saying, — "Is not this the carpenter's son ? 
But the Pharisees of old compare very favorably 
with some of the more modern ones ; as the former 
did expect the Messiah, but the latter neither be- 
lieve that the Messiah has already come, neither do 
they expect him, — that is, the Messiah described, be- 
lieved in, and worshipped by the Apostles. 

But we will not further discuss this question, but 
let us believe Jesus to be what and whom he repre- 
sents himself to be, and consider and speak of him, 
as did the Apostles. Let us adhere to sound and 
safe words when we speak of the Lord Jesus, that 
they may give no uncertain sound or convey unsound 
doctrine; and always remember, that Jesus says, — 



58 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



"He that honoreth not the Son, honoreth not the 
Father who sent him " — " For neither does the Father 
judge any man, but he hath given all judgment unto 
the Son; that all may honor the Son, even as they 
honor the Father,"— John 5 : 22, 23. 

With one more quotation I dismiss this particular 
portion of our subject, — "But the eleven disciples 
went into Galilee, unto the mountain where Jesus 
had appointed them. And when they saw him, they 
worshipped him, but some doubted : and Jesus came 
to them, and spoke unto them, saying, — All au- 
thority hath been given unto me in heaven and on 
earth,"— Mat. 28 : 16-18. 

Reader, if you would behold God, then look at, 
and consider Jesus as ever manifesting the attributes 
of the Father — especially, those of pity and love to- 
wards fallen man and woman. Behold him arrest- 
ing the funeral procession, tearing the widow's son 
from death's embrace, and restoring him to the sor- 
rowing mother's bosom. Behold him weeping at the 
grave of Lazarus in sympathy with common human- 
ity. Hear him saying to the adulteress, — "Neither do 
I condemn thee — go, and sin no more," — and to the 
penitent thief, — "This day shalt thou be with me in 
Paradise." But mark — this same love, pity and ten- 
derness towards man existed, and was as fully enter- 
tained by the Father before the creation of the 
world as it was in Jesus' day. For at that time God 
saw man in the same fallen condition in which he 
beheld him in Jesus' day, and in which he beholds 
him now. Thus we read, that in harmony with the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



59 



tender and infinite love of God, and as a part of 
God's great plan, Jesus was a lamb slain from the 
foundation of the world. Christian, believe that the 
Father himself is love ; and that is through the veil 
of the flesh of Jesus that we ever behold that love. 
Thus it is, that in him, and through him, we behold 
God. And as "God is the same yesterday, to-day 
and forever," He will never love us less than at the 
beginning. Does he love us less because Jesus has 
already died for us? 

But before proceeding further, suffer me to recom- 
mend the following rides to be observed for aid and 
guidance : 

1st, — Believe in God, and that God is love, infinite 
love , and that he is also a rewarder of those who 
diligently seek him — 1 John 4 : 8 ; 11 : 6. 

2nd, — Believe in Jesus Christ, his Son; and that 
the Father was indeed in his Son, and through J esus, 
by his own words and acts, was constantly manifest- 
ing himself, including his love and pity, to man, his 
creature, — John 14 : 10, II. 

3d, — Believe the promises of God; and that with 
God all things are possible, — Matt, 19 : 26. 

4th, — Believe in, and seek to know, both by the- 
ory and experience, the offices of the Holy Spirit. 

5th, — Believe that Jesus is the way, and the truth, 
and the life, and that no man comes to the Father 
but by, or through him, — John 14 : 6. 

6th, — Have an honest heart towards God, which 
includes a fixed determination to do, and also to suf- 
fer his will.— John 7 : 16, 17. 



60 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



7th, — Remember the promise of God through 
James, — "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of 
God, who giveth to all liberally, and upbraideth not, 
and it shall be given him,— James. 1:5. 

8th, — Pray for, and labor to acquire the truth, re- 
membering that you are to be sanctified thereby ; and 
wrap nothing in a napkin, but use quickly and con- 
stantly, for the good of others, every thing which 
God bestows upon you, and God will give you more. 

9th, — If you don't love the truth as you should, 
ask God to bestow that love upon you. 

10th, — Remember always the terms of admission to 
the school of Jesus, viz : That we forsake, or re- 
nounce all that we have, and take up our cross daily, 
and deny self and follow him,— Luke 14 : 25-33; Matt. 
17 : 24-26. 

11th, — Be careful that you are not bound or im- 
peded by erroneous views or teachings. 

12th, — Remember that Satan is your adversary at 
every step of your progress to any, or to a further 
knowledge of the gospel, and of God, and of our 
Saviour Jesus Christ, and ever desires to baffle and 
mislead; therefore, watch. 

13th, — That if in our search for truth, we proceed 
in humility, believing the teachings of Jesus, God is 
willing that we should exercise the reasoning facul- 
ties which he has bestowed upon us. 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE CHURCH IN DARKNESS AND DEGRADATION. 



ND in our search for the truth, let us not find 
fault with church or sectarian creeds, nor be 
bound by them. But let us remember that 
during the reign of Emperor Constantine, who was 
a partial believer, the church, which had been for 
" many years subject to the most cruel and relentless 
persecution, was taken under his protection, and by 
degrees, as the followers of Christ became popular, 
wealthy and influential in earthly tilings, they be- 
came correspondingly poor and weak in spiritual life 
and power ; and the leaders in many instances sought 
the honors of this life, and contended with one 
another for earthly power and dominion ; and thus 
finally the church struck hands with the world, and 
went into the wilderness of darkness and sin. The 
word of God, and the teachings of Jesus and his 
apostles were suppressed, and the traditions and 
teachings of man substituted in their place. The 
true disciples of Jesus were hunted and put to death 
by the false ones, and the base and vile, until scarce- 
ly a tiny spark was left of the " light of the world/' 
Yet here and there lived one who loved the Lord ; 
but frequently lived in doubt, in regard to what was 




62 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the truth, if living within the reach and influence of 
the so-called church within which reigned false doc- 
trine instead of the truth, and consequently the love 
of self and love of the world, instead of the love of 
God including love to man, — haughtiness and world- 
ly ambition, instead of humility and devotion to 
God's service, and all other " tares " which Satan so 
frequently sows in a lukewarm church, and thus 
transforms it into something in keeping with his own 
pleasure, and after his own likeness. 

And it was while the fallen church was in such a 
state, that God's spirit moved the monk Luther to 
carefully read and consider the lifegiving words of 
the Lord Jesus, and to compare his teachings and 
those of the apostles with the doctrines and prac- 
tices of the fallen and wretched church of Rome ; 
and as he prayed and read with an honest heart 
towards God, the light of life dawned upon him ; 
and letting that light shine, as he had learned from 
Jesus to do, he commenced leading the church out of 
the wilderness into the same degree of light which 
God had bestowed upon him. And in process of 
time, as the church increased in the knowledge of 
God and the Lord Jesus Christ, she produced brighter 
lights than Luther himself. For Luther's special 
calling was to preach salvation by faith in the Lord 
Jesus, and to overthrow the doctrine of salvation by 
dead works ; and thus bring to light the true foun- 
dation which the fallen church had hidden from the 
sight of man beneath its refuge of lies. And when 
faith was once established, then followed the doc- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 68 

trine of love. But from the force or power of edu- 
cation, and also of surrounding circumstances, the 
latter was slow in taking root ; and thus for many 
years religious intolerance and persecution prevailed 
among those who protested against those very same 
practices in the Roman church. Yes, the Protestants, 
having indeed a zeal for God, but not according to 
knowledge, would at times persecute one another 
even to banishment, slavery and death for opinion's 
sake, while protesting against similar cruelties prac- 
ticed by the church of Rome. But don't infer from 
the foregoing remarks that I think Luther possessed 
that spirit, for I do not ; but certainly many Protest- 
ants have. But the love of God which is His nature, 
as God is love, by degrees has slowly followed the 
light of the gospel into the human heart ; and supe- 
rior illumination has followed that love, and even to 
such a degree, that in an enlightened community of 
unbelievers an intolerant professor is despised for his 
ignorance of the Gospel. And thus the church has 
been marching out of the wilderness of darkness 
and degradation. But she is not yet out into the 
light, love and glory of the primitive church ; and 
fully believing this, I cannot, therefore, help think- 
ing, that he who says the church, in her present con- 
dition, is more influential than she ever was before, 
is but a novice in true religion. 

It was when the church struck hands with the 
world, that she commenced her march into the Avilder- 
ness ; and is her hand now fully out of the world's? 
As it is with the individual Christian, so it is with 



64 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the entire body of Christ which is the church ; for 
every experienced Christian knows that in propor- 
tion as he allows the love of the world to prevail, so 
the love of God, and the spirit of Christ diminishes 
within him. And is there not now a world-loving 
church ? And while this is so the church cannot be 
yet out of the wilderness. And while some Chris- 
tians believe in, and are striving for holiness, or 
purity of heart, yet they have either so little faith or 
light, that they fail to see that sectarianism or the 
division of the body of Christ is positively forbidden 
by Christ and the apostles. For this perfect unity 
Jesus prays, John 17 : 20-24, saying, " Neither for 
these only do I pray, but for them also that believe 
on me through their word ; that they all may be one, 
even as thou Father art in me, and I in thee, that 
they also may be in us, that the world may believe 
that thou didst send me," &c, &c. Do the Father 
and J esus differ in their opinion or views, as do the 
different religious sects which call themselves 
churches? And Paul condemns and sharply re- 
proves the Corinthians for their divisions ; and the 
sum of their divisions at that time appears to have 
been, that some were saying, "I am of Apollos; 
others of Paul; and others of Cephas," &c. And 
knowing that the true church is indeed one, he asks, 
" Is Christ divided ? Are ye not carnal ? " Now as 
Peter, Paul and Apollos harmoniously believed and 
preached the same gospel, as Peter expresses it, " By 
the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven," we have no 
reason to believe those Corinthians differed in doc- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



65 



trine, as clo the different religious sects of our day. 
But notwithstanding, Paul saw Satan had there an 
entering wedge which he would certainly drive home. 
See 1 Cor. 1 : 10-13 ; 3 : 1-6. 

Here I will say plainly, and I desire that it may 
be remembered, that although in keeping with cus- 
tom, I use the term Roman church, Protestant 
church, &c, yet I fully believe there is but one true 
church, viz., the spiritual body of Christ, and that is 
wholly composed of spiritual Christians. 

As it is the oldest, I will first notice the Roman 
church. We learn from Acts 28, that there was a 
church at Rome when Paul was carried there a pris- 
oner; and furthermore, that he himself preached 
there two years; so that from these facts, and fur- 
ther history, we have every reason to believe, and no 
reason to doubt, that at Rome there was once a liv- 
ing and flourishing church, holding and obeying the 
gospel in its purity and power—and if she had the 
gospel, she had the truth as it is in Jesus. But as 
she sought earthly wealth and power, she perverted 
and prostituted the truth to her own base and venal 
purposes: here abolishing and there perverting a 
truth; and again suffering one to remain, as best 
seemed to serve her vile purposes. Indeed she 
changed the truth into a lie, or allowed it to remain, 
as best suited her convenience. The great truth 
that there is but one true church was very conven- 
ient, so it was retained — another, that the church is 
the light of the world, and therefore, the great repos- 
itory of truth was very serviceable, so that was re- 



66 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tainecl. And another truth, which is as plainly 
taught as words can express it, viz : That upon the 
Apostles was bestowed the power to either forgive 
sins, or to retain them, John 20 : 22, 23; Matt. 18: 
18 ; 1 Cor. 5 : 3-5, was also found very useful with 
the falsehood attached, that the same power rested 
upon every priest, bishop, cardinal and pope of the 
Roman church, however degraded, base and vile he 
might be, was of necessity retained, that the church 
might ever retain and perpetuate her dominion over 
man. And Rome yet teaches the falsehood that how- 
ever vile a pope, priest or bishop may be, yet by vir- 
tue of his office, he may either forgive, or retain sins. 
And the Roman church also added the further false- 
hood that remission of sins could only be obtained 
through the pope or some of his subordinates, thus 
denying man the glorious privilege of coming direct- 
ly to Christ, and through him to the Father, and 
thus bringing the world to the feet of the pope for 
pardon and salvation. Yes, and also brought emper- 
ors and kings to the pope's feet to receive earthly 
kingdoms and crowns, and to retain them. But al- 
though the pope professed to be the vicegerent of 
the Lord Jesus Christ on earth, and to wield his scep- 
tre and power, yet he found so many truths in the 
teachings of Jesus, and his Apostles, antagonizing 
and condemning his own theory and practice, that 
he further found that they must actually be sup- 
pressed. For instance, the truth as taught by Paul, 
that the Christian's body is the temple of the Holy 
Spirit, and therefore the body must be, as such ves- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 67 

sel, kept pure and holy, or the Holy Spirit would, 
and did take its departure was an exceedingly diffi- 
cult truth to either modify, or conform to the doc- 
trine of succession of power, or to the theory or lives 
of the popes and their subordinates, — see 1 Cor. 3 : 
16, 17 ; 6 : 13-20. Again, the doctrine of Christian 
love, and its characteristic features and fruits, and 
the new commandment of the Lord Jesus, — " That 
ye love one another, even as I have loved you," with 
the additional words, — " By this shall all men know 
that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to an- 
other," — John 13 : 34, 35 ; also his command that 
we should return good for evil, blessing for cursing, 
love for hatred, and the holy and loving lives of 
primitive Christians were so unlike the lives and doc- 
trines of the pope and his so-called church, that it 
became absolutely necessary to hide them from the 
view of man; or man would see the great disparity 
between Christ and his apostles, and the pope and 
his. For the first preached the true gospel to men 
in the spirit of humility and love, enduring persecu- 
tion and extreme suffering without retaliation, and 
actually praying for their murderers ; while the lat- 
ter, when pursuasion failed, carried their doctrine by 
the most cruel persecutions and slaughter, and that, 
even of the most humble followers of the Lord. 
And, finally, when it was discovered, that perverting 
and lopping off truths would no longer serve, while 
the Bible was in the hands of the people, then it was * 
denied them. But every thing taught therein, which 
could be construed or used to increase and ensure 



68 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the power of the pope and his so-called church, was 
carefully retained, and among them was the teach- 
ings of Jesus and the apostles respecting the punish- 
ment of the wicked or rebellious ; for by its terrors 
the refractory were measurably kept in subjection. 
Therefore it was politic, not only to preserve that 
doctrine, but also to magnify it to the extreme limit 
of man's imagination, not only as to its intensity, but 
also its duration, which may be readily perceived 
from the bulls and anathemas of Rome ; which latter 
are most remarkable specimens of ingenuity in the 
line of cursing, extending to the hairs of one's head, 
and the nails of one's fingers, in a manner to cause a 
person of weak nerves, and lively imagination, to be- 
lieve a curse was truly coming, if not actually upon 
him. 

EMERGING FROM DARKNESS. 

Now we know that Luther commenced protesting, 
not so much against the doctrines of the Roman 
church, as against its practices, and it was not his in- 
tention to withdraw from it, but to be instrumental 
in reforming abuses of doctrine. But as he pro- 
tested against such abuses, light continued to in- 
crease; but he measurably read the Scriptures 
through Roman glasses, — and, suffer me to say, Pro- 
testants yet continue to do so on some points, while, 
upon the other hand, they reject a few truths which 
yet remain wholly, or in part in the Roman church, 
either quite apparent, or partially concealed by the 
rubbish of lies which sin has engendered. And 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 69 



such truths are sometimes rejected from fear of em- 
bracing error; and again, from prejudice. Yet we 
should not reject a truth from any quarter, if it is a 
truth ; and notwithstanding all that may be said, it 
cannot be denied that the Roman church once had 
the true gospel; and it is equally plain to me, that 
protestantism is also deeply tinctured with Rome's 
corrupted gospel. Therefore, I am forced to the 
conclusion that the church of J esus is not yet fully 
out of the wilderness. Xo, we are not yet in the full 
light, as was the primitive church ; but let us with a 
meek and lowly spirit diligently seek that light, 
obeying as we receive, that we may receive more. 
First, as our beacon light, let us remember that God 
is love, and the source of all love, — John 4 : 7, 8, — 
"For love is of God; God is love." Then hold fast 
to the following, — "Known unto God are all his 
works from the beginning," (an* accovoci) — Acts* 
15 : 18. Therefore it follows that God who is love 
did not create this world, and bring us, his creatures, 
into existence without considering, and also know- 
ing what would be to us the result of our existence; 
although many believers, and lovers of God, and his 
cause, and of their fellow men, think, and sincerely 
preach, or teach it. But how can this be, we certain- 
ly have a right to ask, when the Scriptures tell us, 
that Jesus was the Lamb slain from the foundation 
of the world, — Rev. 13 : 8 — that is, in the mind of 
God. Again in Heb. 4 : 3, Paul tells us that God's 
works were, in like manner, finished from the foun- 
dation of the world. Then in Matt. 25 : 34, we hear 



70 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Jesus saying to those on his right hand, — " Come, ye 
blessed of my Father inherit the kingdom prepared 
for you from the foundation of the world" — pre- 
pared from the foundation of the world, says Jesus ; 
and the foundation of the world, every candid per- 
sons will admit, was laid before the creation of Adam, 
and consequently, the kingdom mentioned by the 
Lord Jesus, was prepared, (or designed) before 
Adam's creation; and if that kingdom, the inherit- 
ance of the pure, was prepared before Adam's crea- 
tion, the plan of salvation, through which the}^ were 
to be fitted for that inheritance, was also devised by 
the Almighty previous to man's creation. Then it 
follows that God had a plan, before he commenced 
the creation of the world, not only for the creation 
of the world, but for peopling it, and for the salvation 
of his creatures. Therefore, the inspired apostle 
might well say, — "Known to God are all his works 
from the most ancient times ;" yes, known to God was 
his own plan. And now can any one for a moment 
believe, that an omniscient God was ignorant of what 
would interfere with that plan, or of Satan, who 
would attempt to first mar his works, and then to de- 
feat his plans. If so, it would follow that God was 
taken by surprise by one of his own creatures, the 
devil, and that, in this contest of about six thousand 
years between God and Satan, the latter has, by far, 
been apparently the most successful ; and according 
to the doctrine or theory of Arminian, Calvinist, or 
Romanist, Satan always will be, if success is estima- 
ted by the number saved or lost, even though Satan 
himself be finally brought to naught. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



71 



But if you doubt that God had a plan which he 
perfectly knew and understood, and also all its work- 
ings and final results, please read and consider the 
following quotations in connection with the fore- 
going ones, with freedom from bias by former views. 
" Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual 
blessing in the heavenly places in Christ ; even as he 
chose us in him before the foundation of the world, 
that we should be holy and without blemish before 
him in love, having foreordained us," &c. — Eph. 
1 : 3-5. And Peter, speaking of Christ, says that he 
" was foreknown indeed before the foundation of the 
world, but was manifested at the end of the times 
for your sake," &c— 1 Peter 1 : 20. Now Paul first 
tells us that true Christians were chosen in Christ 
before the foundation of the world ; and then Peter 
tells us that Jesus was foreknown in like manner, — 
foreknown for what ? For the salvation of man, a 
Redeemer and Saviour, now returned from whence 
he came. " Whom the heavens must contain until 
the restitution of all things," says Peter. — Acts 3 : 21. 
And in these last words of the inspired apostles is 
revealed more of God's plan so well known to him- 
self from, or before, the remotest period. By this 
time perhaps some good sister is saying, " Horrors ! 
here is Election ! " Please be peaceful and happy. I 
will not trouble you with Calvinistic election ; but I 
may trouble them about it who love the doctrine. 
However, there is an election ; but let us forget it, at 
present, and all other theories of that nature, while 



72 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



we proceed with this examination, and leave the re- 
sult with the Lord. For results are especially his ; 
and it is ours to act, learning and doing his will. 
But with a submissive will, let us continually pray 
for the illumination of the Holy Spirit, that we may 
reject error, and receive the truth. 



CHAPTER V. 



THE PLAN OF GOD — INCLUDING BOTH THE CBEA- 
TION AND SALVATION OF MAN. 



E have found that God, from the beginning, 
had a plan which with all its workings and re- 
sults, was from the first known to him. And 
I know of no Scripture which conflicts with this 
conclusion. Brother, do you know of any? Now 
it follows from the foregoing conclusion, that God 
made no mistake, either in regard to his plan, its 
working, or its results. Will any Christian directly 
say that God made a mistake either in his plan, its 
working or its result ? Then don't either think or 
say it indirectly. One method, the first, is that of a 
frank, honest spirit, — the latter, that of Satan ; and 
as he is the author of lies, and especially understands 
his business, it is a very effective method of decep- 
tion, and particularly in deceiving one's self. Now 
brother, I ask you to honestly and frankly say, wheth- 
er you think that God, in any respect, or degree, 
made a mistake. Don't be thinking that it will im- 
pair or destroy your creed. The truthful part of 
your creed cannot be injured by the truth itself, and 
if there is a lie in it, you should earnestly desire its 
removal. Did the apostles of the Lord blend lies 



74 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



with the truth in order to further, or advance the 
gospel ? You say no. Then shall we do so ? The 
gospel don't require such aid. Please to remember 
that we are to be sanctified by the truth, consequently, 
error has just the contrary effect. And Satan knows 
it well ; and therefore, seeks to infuse into man the 
greatest possible amount of error. The power of a 
lie depends very much upon its apparent source or 
author. Thus, a lie from a respectable man often 
passes for truth because of its source, and thus ef- 
fects great evil. So a lie in your creed which you 
highly value, will injure you much more than if 
found in most places ; therefore, eradicate it with all 
haste from your mind. 

Now God had a plan ; and God being love, that 
plan was founded upon love to man, and to all his 
creatures. For that plan is God's own and immedi- 
ate production, not remote ; and must, therefore, 
partake fully of God's nature and character ; and in 
proportion as it is understood or comprehended by 
finite man, it reflects the peculiar attributes of God. 
And one attribute ascribed to God by all believers, 
is infinite wisdom. First then, did an infinitely wise 
God devise an imperfect plan ? I will cheerfully ad- 
mit that he might do it, if he chose ; but if he did 
devise such a plan, he knew at the time, where the 
imperfection was, and what would be the result of 
it in every particular. And as man was made, in 
pursuance of such plan, in the likeness of the Crea- 
tor, and, as the Scriptures tell us, was placed at the 
head of creation, Gen. 1 : 26, and over the works of 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



75 



God's hands, did not God know, and well consider, 
what the result of his plan would be to him ? Cer- 
tainly he did, says the disciple of Calvin ; and I 
certainly believe in God's eternal purpose. Yes, 
but what you term God's eternal purpose, makes the 
result of his plan exceedingly disastrous for man. 

But when the Scriptures declare that God is love, 
then we know that the attribute of love, or rather 
love itself, must have, in a remarkable degree, entered 
into the glorious and perfect plan of our heavenly 
Father when he devised and created all things, in- 
cluding the plan of man's salvation. Therefore, the 
plan of God, or the eternal purpose of God, if you 
choose so to call it, when comprehended, especially 
reflects his infinite love. I think that all religious 
denominations hold in common the great truth that 
God is infinite in love, wisdom and power. Now 
suffer me to ask in true brotherly love, if God's 
great plan, including that for the salvation, as well 
as the creation of man, as explained by any religious 
sect, reflects those three great attributes of Deity, 
love, wisdom and power ? Please consider this ques- 
tion, and answer it frankly. But in that plan are 
other attributes of our heavenly Father, which evi- 
dently appear when one correctly views it, viz., jus- 
tice, mercy and truth. That portion of God's glo- 
rious plan, devised by our merciful and loving 
heavenly Father for the salvation of the human fam- 
ily, and which the ministry generally call the " great 
scheme of salvation," is usually considered and 
treated by them as a plan separate from that of the 



76 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



creation ; and thus commenting upon it separately, 
they cause their hearers and readers who accept their 
views, to believe that God's wise and beneficent plan, 
so far as it related to man, the noblest of his works, 
or rather the execution of it, was unexpectedly inter- 
rupted by Satan's temptation of Adam; and that 
thus the omnipotent and omniscient Creator of the 
universe was taken by surprise, his plan deranged, 
and every thing connected with the earth unexpect- 
edly thrown into confusion. 

But suppose we admit for a moment, that Satan 
did work a surprise upon his Creator and ours, then 
we have to further admit that in Eve, God furnished 
him a special instrument to work with, which did 
not exist before her creation. For we know that 
man was first created, and then woman. And we 
have good reason to believe, and this the preachers 
tell us, that previous to her creation, all nature, 
physical and moral, moved on harmoniously, man 
standing forth at the head of creation, in his pristine 
beauty and glory. Thus we see that if we admit the 
error, that God was surprised, then follows the sec- 
ond, — that he unwisely furnished Satan an instru- 
ment to work that surprise with. But the only true 
God, in whom we believe, was not surprised by his 
creature, any more than Jesus was surprised by Judas 
Iscariot, when betrayed by him. But from the above 
we may see, if we will, how one error begets, and 
leads into another ; and thus, in course of time, 
without humility, devotion to God's will, prayer, and 
the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we may be led into 
a labyrinth or errors. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



77 



Again, we hear from the pulpit, but find it not in 
the Bible, that man came from the hands of his Cre- 
ator a perfect being — certainly, his must have been a 
very relative sort of perfection, which was so quickly 
obliterated by a fallen being like Satan. If Adam 
had been morally perfect, he would never have 
broken the command of God. But perhaps you are 
now saying, could a perfect God make an imperfect 
creature? Certainly — cannot a very skillful me- 
chinist make an imperfect machine? And you can- 
not deny God's right to make Adam as he pleased. 
But Adam's fall, and the words of the Lord Jesus 
and Paul's, prove Adam's moral or spiritual imper- 
fection, although at first both good and innocent. 
That Adam was not deceived, but sinned knowingly, 
is proved by the following — " And Adam was not 
deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the 
transgression." Then in 1 Cor. 15 : 45-47 — "the first 
man was made a living soul; the last man a quick- 
ening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is 
spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterwards 
that which is spiritual. The first man is of the 
earth, earthy, the second man is the Lord from 
Heaven." Yes, Adam was, indeed, of the earth, 
earthy, or earthlike, and earth-loving; and that is 
just what we are by nature, and as Adam was not 
deceived, as was Eve, he did not violate God's com- 
mand by mistake, or blindly, but from lack of true 
moral, or spiritual pOAver, to resist and overcome. 
Every intelligent Christian will readily admit, that 
the more a man is like God, the more he will love 



78 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



God ; and the more he loves God, the better able he 
is to keep his commandments. In fact, Jesns says, 
"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth 
them, he it is that lovethme," etc.; and again, "If a 
man love me, he will keep my words," etc. ; again, 
— "He that loveth me not, keepeth not my sayings.'' 

Now loving Jesus is loving God ; and keeping the 
commandments of Jesus, is keeping the command- 
ments of God — and Jesus loved God to such a de- 
gree that he declared that it was his meat and drink 
to do the will of him that sent him. And why did 
Jesus so greatly delight in doing the Father's will ? 
Because he had God's nature, and therefore, truly 
loved the Father; and thus, was not only able to 
keep all his commandments, fulfilling the entire law, 
but it was his greatest happiness to do so. But on 
the contrary, Adam being made from the dust of the 
earth, was of the earth, earthy, and loved earthly 
things, (and so do his descendants), and did not have 
enough of God's nature to enable him to love God 
sufficiently to keep even one negative commandment. 
Let any one assert and prove the contraiy. 

But it would seem that Adam loved Eve suffi- 
ciently, who, like himself, and of himself, was also 
of the earth, earthy, to be so influenced by her, that 
plunging headlong after his fallen mate, he violated 
the command of his Creator, and suffered the 
penalty of death, which penalty was affixed to the 
command of God when it was given; for we knoAV 
that when God gave the command, he told Adam, 
that in the day he broke it, dying, he should die. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



79 



From which fact, viz : that Adam knew the penalty 
attached to the offence, and was not deceived, we 
must infer that Adam was, in his nature, so far re- 
moved from his Maker, that he did not even fear God 
sufficiently to deter him from committing the death- 
producing sin — and thus, "dying, he died," in pro- 
cess of time, with Eve, his wife ; in like manner are 
all the descendants of Adam passing away. In Gen. 
3, we read that God said to the woman, "I will 
greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception ; in 
sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and thy de- 
sire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over 
thee." And every enlightened Christian knows that 
woman has endured that penalty ever since; and 
neither the skill of the physician, in one case, or the 
legislation of man in the other, has ever delivered 
her from it. But her true course is to qualify herself 
so to live in the position allotted her, that she may 
have the approbation of God, and the esteem and re- 
spect of man. And I must here add, that the most 
effective qualification for that purpose, and the high- 
est accomplishment within the reach of either man 
or woman, is a truly experimental knowledge of the 
gospel of our Lord and Redeemer. And let us thank 
God that there was a promise immediately preceding 
her penalty, verse 15. " But to Adam he said, Cursed 
is the ground for thy sake ; in sorrow shalt thou eat 
of it all the days of thy life. Thorns also and thistles 
shalt it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat the 
herb of the field. In the sweat of thy face shalt 
thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground;" 



80 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



and then follow the words, — "For out of it wast 
thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt 
thou return." Now here, in a few words, God tells 
man of what, or from what he was made, whence he 
came, and whither he should go — and when you con- 
sider the words closely, you find nothing but earth, 
out of earth, and to earth again. There is nothing 
about spirit, spiritual things, or spiritual life in those 
words, nor anything from which we can infer that 
Adam had any whatever — and mark, this is God's 
analysis of man. Moreover, Paul tells us that the 
first man is of the earth, earthy, — 1 Cor. 15 : 47. 
And J ohn tells us the same in substance, — John 3 : 
31. And please notice, that both John and Paul are, 
in each case, drawing a comparison between the 
nature of Jesus, and that of man. But some one may 
now be ready to remark, "Did not God say, 'Let us 
make man in our image, after our likeness?' and 
furthermore, do we not read, 'In the image of God 
created He him ?' In the foregoing quotations are 
found the two words, image and likeness ; and the 
question arises, are they synonymous, or used as 
such there ? And they seem to be so used in other 
portions of Scripture, as in Ex. 20 : 4, — "Thou shalt 
not make unto thee any graven image, or any like- 
ness of any thing," etc. ; and in Deut. 4 : 16-18, — 
" Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven 
image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of 
male or female, the likeness of beast that is upon the 
earth," etc., etc.; also Deut. 4 : 16, 17, 18, likeness 
seems to be synonymous with image. But in Phil. 



1 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



81 



2 : 7, Paul in speaking of Christ, says of him, — 
"And took upon him the form of a servant, and was 
made in the likeness of men." Now we know that 
applied to Christ's body, and not his spiritual nature, 
for we know his spiritual nature was as his Father's ; 
but he, in person, was like man, — and so in person 
was Adam in the likeness of God. Again, Jesus 
having the spiritual nature of the Father, could not 
sin — in truth, there was no sin in him to manifest it- 
self, or operate in a sinful manner. Now if Adam 
had possessed a like nature, that is, God's holy spir- 
itual nature, he would have lived and done as Jesus 
did, keeping all the commands of God. You dare 
not even think that Jesus, placed in Adam's position, 
would have violated the command, as did Adam. 
Again, if you say that Adam, in spirit, or spiritu- 
ally had the likeness of God, then you virtually, but 
indirectly, say that God's nature was sinful, for 
Adam did sin, and he could not have sinned, if his 
nature had not have been in some manner suscepti- 
ble of sin, no more than the Lord J esus. Brother, 
take your concordance and search the Bible for that 
great spiritual fall of Adam, of which you have 
heard so much from the pulpit, and you won 't find 
it there. No, Adam had not a spiritual night from 
which to get such a fall as we have often heard de- 
scribed. Therefore, Adam did not suffer, what is 
termed in the theology of to-day, a spiritual death, 
but natural, or temporal death — just such as God de- 
scribed in Gen. 2 : 19, — " For dust thou art, and unto 
dust shalt thou return." Paul says, 1 Cor. 15 : 22, 



82 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



— "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be 
made alive." Notice the comparison expressed, and 
you can but perceive, that if one has a spiritual 
death in Adam, he must also have a spiritual resur- 
rection in Christ ; and when one has that, it is cer- 
tainly well with him. However, I do not deny that 
Adam, in some degree, had the holy nature of 
God, and in sinning fell — and so does every person 
sink down when he sins, and he sinks or falls in pro- 
portion to his offence. Believers know this by sad 
experience. I have already said in substance, if not 
directly, that if Adam had possessed God's nature, 
as did Jesus, he could not have sinned, and in sup- 
port of this, I refer to 1 John 3 : 9, — "Whosoever is 
born of God doth not commit sin ; for his seed re- 
maineth in him, and he cannot sin, because he is born 
of God." Now this is said of an individual regener- 
ated, or born from above, and the reason or cause of 
such a person not being able to sin, is, that the seed 
of God remaineth in him. Is not the seed of God 
the nature of God? Adam did sin — did he therefore 
have the seed of God in him ? He was certainly be- 
low a true living Christian of the gospel age, as 
shown by the fact that he sinned, or the apostle 
John, through ignorance, erred in his description of 
such a Christian. But such a proposition cannot be 
entertained for a moment, as the apostle was in- 
spired by the Holy Spirit, and was also especially the 
beloved disciple of the Lord. Again, when we con- 
sider the character of some good men who suc- 
ceeded Adam, under the old dispensation, we are con- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



83 



strained to admit, that they were better than he was. 
To be sure, some like Solomon were upset by wo- 
man, as was Adam; but certainly, Joseph, the son of 
Jacob, stood the test. Compare Abraham, Enoch, 
Elijah, Job and Moses with Adam, as it regards good- 
ness, fidelity, and power to withstand temptation, 
and perform the will of God ; yet they were the de- 
scendants of Adam. But they rose by their perse- 
verance, in all those qualities which endear men to 
God, while Adam sinned and fell. But with rever- 
ence for our common Creator and Redeemer, allow 
me to ask preachers of the Arminian faith, if they 
have fully considered the words in Adam's plea — 
"The woman whom thou gavest to be with me," — 
Gen. 3:12? Particularly, please consider the two 
words "Thou gavest," — and along with Adam's plea 
consider the following words of Jesus and the apos- 
tles, — "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the 
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the 
world," Matt. 25 : 34. "The Lamb that hath been 
slain from the foundation of the world," Rom. 13 : 
8. " Even as he chose us in him before the foundation 
of the world, that we should be holy, and without 
blemish before him in love ; having foreordained us 
unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto him- 
self," etc., Eph. 1 : 4. And Peter speaking of Christ 
and his crucifixtion, says of him that he "was foreknown 
indeed before the foundation of the world, but was 
manifested at the times," etc., 1 Peter 1 : 19-21. 
Now how can any person of discernment help seeing, 
unless he is stubbornly blind, being determined to 



84 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



stick to, and by his own creed, anyhow, that God 
had planned before Adam had a living existence, the 
entire creation of onr planet and every living crea- 
ture upon it, and Adam's course in life, and that sin 
and death should enter the world through him, 
(Rom. 5 : 12), and also that eternal life, salvation 
and glory should follow by and through the Lord 
Jesus Christ? And if these things are so, such was 
the will of God. Now if God wills and plans that I 
shall perform a certain act, or any number of them, 
can I refrain from doing them ? No, I cannot, what- 
ever the consequences may be to me. I am his crea- 
ture. He owns me. I am not my own. And he 
lias the unquesitonable right to do with his own as he 
pleases. And the consequences to me are also his, 
whether such consequences be to me either joy or 
sorrow. So it was with Adam. He had his allotted 
part to perform in God's plan ; and I am wholly un- 
able to perceive how he could avoid it. When I say 
that Adam had his allotted part to perform in crea- 
tion, I mean as the father of all his descendants, 
which are billions upon billions ; and is not creation 
the foundation, and therefore, a part of the scheme 
of salvation? Now the first results of Adam's of- 
fence were exceedingly severe upon him, but happier 
results were to follow. Adam was an instrument in 
the hand of his owner ; and his -infinite owner had 
the unquestionable right to do as he pleased with 
him ; and did so. Therefore, let us deal gently with 
our first ancestor both in thought and word. 

Every person, who is familiar with the Scriptures, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



85 



knows that the word day, as used therein, frequently 
signifies some period of time different from twenty- 
four hours ; therefore, when God said to Adam, "In 
the day thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die," 
or dying thou shalt die, it follows that it was not 
necessary that Adam should die within a literal day. 
Indeed, Peter tells us that " One day with the Lord 
is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one 
day." — 2 Peter 3 : 8. And if any one wishes, he may 
notice that Adam finally died within a thousand 
years from his creation. — Gen. 5 : 5. 

From the foregoing examination, I conclude that 
the death penalty executed upon Adam was really 
temporal or natural death, and not spiritual death, 
as many contend. And with this conclusion we can 
make a ready use and application of Paul's words, 
" For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all he 
made alive." — 1 Cor. 15 : 22. Yes through, and in 
Christ will every one again receive life. Notice Paul 
does not say, as in Adam all died — if he did, it might 
give some coloring to the idea, that all of Adam's 
descendants died spiritually in him ; but he does not ; 
and in truth from the 11th to 27th verse, treats 
of, and establishes the doctrine of the resurrection 
of all men. 

But let us now return to the great plan of God in 
regard to this planet, and its inhabitants, not forget- 
ting that God loves all his creatures, and being omnip- 
otent and omniscient, that he will not allow his pur- 
poses of love to be defeated by any one. And when 
you hear it said that God cannot do this and that, 



86 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



don't believe one word of it. Why, when you first 
thought of turning to the Lord, and seeking your 
soul's salvation and safety, Satan told you, you could 
not do this and that ; and hid from your eyes the 
great truth, that God loved you with an infinite love, 
and would sustain you by his omnipotent power, 
and also the great truth, that "with God all things 
are possible." And now the same adversary, whose 
power in a very great degree lies in your unbelief 
and fear, and it may be also in your slothfulness, in 
a degree, yet hates and opposes your further acqui- 
sition of true wisdom and goodness. 

When we read, as I have already quoted, that 
Jesus was a Lamb slain from the foundation of the 
world, (in the mind of the Father), and foreordained 
before the foundation of the world ; and that there 
was also a kingdom prepared for the righteous from 
the foundation of the world, and like declarations, 
and remember that these declarations were made 
four thousand years after the creation of man, we 
can but believe that God had a plan extending from 
before the creation, to the restitution of all things ; 
or, using Paul's words, "When he (Christ), shall 
deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father ; 
when he shall have abolished all rule, and all author- 
ity and power. For he must reign, until he hath put 
all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that 
shall be abolished is death." Yes, the angels, we are 
told, desire to look into this plan. And Peter says, 
"Concerning which salvation the prophets sought 
and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



87 



that should come unto you ; searching what time or 
what manner of time the Spirit of Christ, which was 
in them, did point unto, when it testified beforehand 
the sufferings of Christ, in the glories that should 
follow them * * * * which things angels desire 
to look into." Yes, it was God's plan of salvation 
the prophets and angels desired to look into and com- 
prehend. See 1 Peter 1 : 10-12. And of Jesus it 
was said by the prophet, " I will utter things which 
have been kept secret from the foundation of the 
world." — Matt. 13 : 16. And Paul says of the gos- 
pel, "According to the revelation of the mystery 
which was kept secret from the foundation of the 
world ; but is now made manifest," &c. — Rom. 16 : 
25, 26. Yes, God kept the plan of salvation a secret 
to be revealed first by Jesus and his apostles. For 
four thousand years it was kept a secret by the 
Father even from the angels in heaven, and the good 
and just upon earth. And when the gospel was first 
preached, partially unfolding the full plan of salva- 
tion to the Jews, it was then kept secret for a period, 
that the plan of salvation embraced the Gentiles 
also. That glorious plan, a plan fraught with the 
love of an infinite God, whose nature is love, was 
supposed to be restricted to the descendants of 
Jacob.— Acts 10 ; 11 : 1-18. 

But God had not only a plan of creation and sal- 
vation before he entered upon the great work of ex- 
ecuting it, but it was truly a systematic plan, harmo- 
nious in all its parts, being in keeping with the infi- 
nite, and therefore, comprehensive mind of its Cre- 



88 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



ator ; and therefore, was not subject to any unforeseen 
interruption, or derangement, as is an invention of a 
finite mind. Again, we may learn from the Scrip- 
tures, if we will, that God had, and yet has a due, or 
in his own sight, a proper time, for every truth in 
that great plan to be unfolded to his servants, or 
children, and through them to all who will receive 
them. And the unfolding of those truths produces 
in God's own due time its fruits or results; and 
thus the great plan of God, including creation and 
salvation, continues to develop and produce its in- 
tended results in harmony with his will. I say crea- 
tion as well as salvation, because God at the begin- 
ning placed many things in the process of creation, 
and some of them seem to us to be finished; but 
others are yet in the process of completion. "In the 
beginning even the earth was without form and void; 
and darkness was upon the face of the deep," &c. — 
Gen. 1 : 2. And it is now evident to an observing 
person, that portions of our own country have not 
been above water as long as others. And other 
changes are continually going forward, as science 
truly teaches us. Therefore, we need not reject the 
true doctrine of evolution ; but let us have it free 
from Satan's lies. But let none of us be numbered 
among them of whom it is said, " For this they will- 
fully forget, that there were heavens from of old, 
and an earth compacted out of water and amidst 
water, by the word of God," &c. — 2 Peter 3:5. It 
may be that Peter understood evolution better than 
any scientist of the present day, as he drew directly 
from the fountain of all knowledge. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



89 



Now God's having a due time strongly tends to 
prove, or does of itself prove, that our Creator and 
Redeemer had a systematically arranged plan from 
the beginning. And we are told that, "In due time 
Christ died for the ungodly." — Rom. 5 : 6. And 
Christ died four thousand years after the creation ; 
yet we are told, that he was a Lamb slain from the 
foundation of the world. Then looking into the fu- 
ture, Peter says, "Humble yourselves therefore 
under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt 
you in due time" Then there is also a due time for 
the saints of God to be exalted. And the following; 
words show more : " And white robes were given 
unto every one of them ; and it was said unto them, 
that they should rest yet for a little season, until 
their fellow servants also and their brethren, that 
should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." — 
Rev. 6 : 11. And Paul says, 2 Thess. 2 : 1-3, "Now 
we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto 
him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be 
troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by let- 
ter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 
Let no man deceive you by any means ; for that day 
shall not come, except there come a falling away 
first ; and that man of sin be revealed, the son of 
perdition." From which it appears, that the coming 
of the most joyful and glorious events have to await, 
in God's plan, those events which are fraught with 
sin, wretchedness and misery. 

But here follow some words of Jesus, which are 



90 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the words of God, and which at least show, that the 
Jews were embraced within the scope of God's due 
time and order. Yes, and show that other people 
were, as the words embrace events taking place before 
Abraham's time. " Fill ye up then the measure of 
your fathers. Ye serpents, ye offspring of vipers, 
how can ye escape the judgment of hell ? (Gehenna.) 
Wherefore, behold I send unto you prophets, and wise 
men and scribes ; and some of them shall ye scourge in 
your synagogues, and persecute them from city to 
city ; that upon you may come all the righteous blood 
shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous 
Abel unto the blood of Zachariah, son of Barachiah, 
whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar. 
Verily I say unto you all these things shall come 
upon this race." The word yevsa, generation, or 
race, I here translate race, for although the genera- 
tion of Jews then living did experience untold suf- 
ferings, yet we know, that other generations of 
that race have since endured very severe persecu- 
tions, and indeed extraordinary and unaccountable 
persecutions from the hands of their fellow men; 
being first hated and persecuted by one nation, and 
then another, and frequently without any apparent 
cause. But if any one prefers to translate yzvsa 
generation, then the fulfillment of the prophecy of 
Jesus will be, by such rendering, confined to that 
particular generation. But be that as it may, God 
had an unquestionable right to order the whole mat- 
ter as he pleased, and lie cannot act unjustly. Yet 
those words of Jesus show that God has a regularly 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



91 



arranged plan, and every part of it must be fulfilled 
in due time and order. Please reflect upon the 
words, " Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers." 
Measure of what? Consider it in connection with 
the context, and free from your previous sectarian dog- 
mas, and you can come to but one conclusion in re- 
gard to what was to be measured. 

Yes, from the beginning God has had both a plan 
and a purpose ; or speaking more in order, a purpose 
and a plan. For God's plan was conceived by him — 
for what say you ? Romanist, Arminian, Calvinist, 
Universalist, Adventist, and Restitutionist. What 
say each and all of you ? Be careful how you reply ; 
for each one of you, as do we all individually, both 
want and need the most affectionate, the wisest, the 
most powerful, and the most just God, we can possi- 
bly have. And such is the God of the Scriptures, 
when they are correctly understood. But the gods 
of your various creeds, as substantially, although 
with some circumlocution, described therein, all dif- 
fer from such a God. The Romanist says that their 
God has appointed and decreed, that no man can 
possibly be saved unless he seeks salvation through 
the church of Rome ; and as millions upon millions 
do not thus seek salvation, they go down into an end- 
less hell of misery, however sincere such persons may 
be in their belief. Thus his God is deficient either 
in love towards his creatures, such as don't believe 
the doctrines of the Roman church, or lacks the 
ability to influence and cause such individuals so to 
believe that they might be saved. Yes, not only 



92 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



saved, but also glorified with other saints of the 
Most High. Many other illustrations of the Roman- 
ist's God might be given showing the marked differ- 
ence between him and the true God. But they would 
be quite superfluous ; therefore, I refrain. 

But I am now about to give especial attention to 
Arminianism and Calvinism, as one or the other en- 
ters largely into all the creeds of those religious de- 
nominations which are termed by their adherents 
Evangelical ; and ascertain whether the Calvinist and 
Arminian each worship the same God, or different 
gods. Please note this. The same God has the same, 
and not different attributes. 

Now I think no one will deny that God must have 
had some purpose in view, previous to forming or 
devising his plan. For certainly he must have 
formed his plan to effect some purpose which he had 
previously conceived. And I think no intelligent 
Christian would for one moment contend, that our 
infinite Creator would have created all things with- 
out some design, and therefore, as an experiment, 
and thus simply for his amusement, without regard 
to the welfare and happiness of his creatures. Then 
we conclude that God first had a purpose ; and that, 
secondly, he devised his plan to accomplish his pur- 
pose. But we know from the Scriptures, and some 
of us also from blessed experience, that " God is 
love ; " therefore, all his purposes originate in, and 
spring from love. Indeed, all his purposes are the 
spontaneous fruit of love to all his creatures, being 
his own immediate productions. Then let us hold 
firmly these great and important truths : — 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



93 



1st. That God is love. 

2nd. That God Is infinite in all his attributes, love, wis- 
dom, power, mercy, justice, &c. 

3rd. That in creation, God first conceived a purpose, 
snd secondly devised a plan to effect that purpose. 

4th. That God being essentially love, his purposes 
spring from love itself, as his, and its own spontaneous 
production, flourish and grow in love, and, in fact, will 
neither grow or flourish in any other soil ; therefore his 
purposes are being fulfilled in love to all his creatures ; 
and if He makes any distinction, that distinction is in 
favor of man, who was made in the image of God. 

5th. That God being infinite in all his attributes, not 
one of his purposes can, in any degree, fail. 

6th. That God's purpose, in the beginning, embraced 
not only the creation of man, but also his salvation, ex- 
tending from before the creation, to the restitution of all 
things, when Christ having put down all rule, and all 
authority and power, shall deliver up the kingdom to 
God, the Father.— Matt. 29 : 18 ; Acts 3 : 21 ; 1 Cor. 15: 
22-28 ; Eph. 1 : 5, 9, 11, 14, 20, 22 ; Gal. 4:3-5; Eph. 
2 : 6-10 ; Eph. 3 : 1-5, 9-12 ; John 17 : 20-24. 

7th. That God being omniscient, knowing alike the 
j>ast, present and future, knew from the beginning pre- 
cisely how his plan would work in every particular, and 
also what it would accomplish ; and as God is also om- 
nipotent, his plan cannot, in the least degree, fail to ac- 
complish his purpose. 

8th. The Scriptures teacli us, that from the beginning 
God had both a purpose and a plan ; but nowhere teach 
us that God has modified either the one, or the other ; 
and as God is both omniscient and omnipotent, no other 
being could do so, either by surprise, or in any other 



94 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



manner. Acts 15 : 18 ; Heb. 4:3; Rev. 13 : 8 ; Matt. 
25 : 34 ; Eph. 1 : 4 ; 1 Peter 1 : 20. 

9th. It therefore follows, that neither Satan, or Adam, 
or Eve, or the trio, ever modified or deranged the plan 
of our Creator and Saviour in the least degree ; for if it 
were so, then God's omniscience or omnipotence would 
be disproved. 

On one occasion, when his disciples James and 
John said to Jesus, " Wilt thou that we command fire 
to come down from heaven, and consume them, even 
as Elias did?" we read, — "But he turned and re- 
buked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of 
spirit ye are of," — Luke 9 : 54, 55. Now these two 
were of the twelve apostles chosen by our Lord, and 
were also two of the three most honored by him, as 
any one familiar with the life of our Saviour, must 
remember that it was Peter, James and John whom 
Jesus selected from the twelve to accompany him on 
many important occasions; so that it would seem 
they were fully equal to, if not superior to the nine. 
These three, but a short time before, had been pres- 
sent at his transfiguration, and were "eye witnesses 
of his glory," and in common with the twelve, had 
been listening to his instructions to love one's enemies, 
and to return good for evil, blessing for cursing, etc. 
Yet they possessed not, at that time, the spirit of 
Christ, which was the spirit of the Father, and which 
is love. But after the resurrection of Christ, and 
the reception of his nature, they were animated by 
his spirit, and then this same John realized, and was 
able to tell us, that " God is love," as were the other 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



95 



apostles. And all of them were then filled with love, 
wisdom and power ; and no one of them had any dis- 
position to call fire from any quarter, to destroy those 
who offended them, either to punish their enemies, 
or to promote the canse of the Redeemer. But 
abounding in love to all men, they were filled with 
the light of Christ, and their teachings were not 
"sounding brass, or tinkling cymbal," 1 Cor. 13 : 1; 
but they "preached the gospel with the Holy Spirit 
sent down from heaven," 1 Peter 1 : 12. And Paul 
says of himself and the other apostles, "Being re- 
viled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it; being 
defamed, we entreat," etc.; and w^e hear that same 
John saying, "He that abideth in love, abide th in 
God, and God abideth in him," 1 John 4 : 16. It was 
this apostle who recorded the new eommandment of 
Jesus, "That we should love one another,, even as he 
loved us." And now let us hear what is the effect 
upon a person, of both obeying, and also of disobey- 
ing that commandment, as declared by this same 
apostle, — "He that loveth his brother, abideth in the 
light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him 
But he that hateth his brother, is in the darkness, 
and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not 
whither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded 
his eyes," 1 John 2 : 10, 11. From the above we 
plainly see the effect of both love, and the want of 
love, upon the understanding. And every one will 
admit, that the apostles being endowed with the Holy 
Spirit, and having learned from the very lips of our 
Saviour, were workmen unsurpassed in the vineyard 



96 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



of our Lord. And what was their course with an 
heretical, or erring brother ? They exhorted him, 
rebuked him, prayed for him, told him privately his 
fault, and if he refused then to reform, then, told 
him before two or three brethren as witnesses ; and 
if he yet refused to listen and reform, then reported 
him to the church, and if he refused to listen to the 
church, then they no longer regarded him as a 
Christian, 1 John 5 : 16; 1 Tim. 5 : 1-20; 2 
Tim. 4:2; Heb. 3 : 13; 1 Pet. 5 : 11; Matt. 18 : 15- 
18. But in no case do we find them persecuting 
one another for opinion's sake. 

Allow me to ask you if your confidence in either 
of the apostles as a religious teacher, would not be 
grectly impaired, if you found it recorded in the 
Testament, that he either whipped, fined, imprisoned, 
or put to death any believer in Christ and his teach- 
ings, and who evidently loved his fellow men, be- 
cause he held some religious views different from his 
own? I think your heart and mind both reply, yes. 
But we find no such record of those men. Yet we 
do find such a record of some of the earl}' prominent 
Protestant reformers and their followers. And why 
should not that record also impair our confidence in 
their teachings ; especially, when any person of that 
character eliminates, as he thinks, from the sacred 
Scriptures some religious principle, dogma, or creed? 
For we may safely write it down in our minds and 
hearts as an established truth, that where a religious 
teacher pursues a different course from that of Jesus 
and the apostles, in propagating the gospel, when 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



9T 



that difference includes persecution, that such a 
teacher is deficient in love ; and if he is deficient in 
love, then he is deficient in truth. For when love 
does not fill any and every portion of the heart, ha- 
tred occupies what would otherwise be the vacuum. 
You can see that such a vacuum must be filled with 
something either good or evil. And where there is 
hatred in the heart, in that heart are also lies; so that 
when a person attempts to draw from such a heart a re- 
ligious truth, or deduction, it may be a lie, when he 
thinks it is a truth; for where hatred is, there also is 
the father of lies, the devil, and being in such a 
heart to a greater or less degree, he thus from thence 
issues lies, and skillfully manages, through the in- 
strumentality of such religious teacher, to sugar-coat 
those lies with the truth, and make them quite palat- 
table to unstable believers, especially so, to those who 
love the world and worldly pleasures. We know that 
by the decree of the Father, in Jesus all fulness 
dwells — fulness of what? — love, purity, truth, mer- 
cy, etc. And as the apostle teaches us, if Jesus is in us 
then those graces are in us, as they are in him, as he 
brings them along in him when he enters a man ; and 
therefore, while he stays in a man, those graces are 
there, and when he leaves, those graces go along 
with him. And Jesus is the light of life, and light 
is truth. Did Paul have the love of God in him 
when he was persecuting the Christian church ? No. 
Did he have light in him ? Certainly not. Before 
his conversion he was persecuting for opinion's sake. 
Did Paul persecute any one for opinion's sake after 



98 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



his conversion? You reply, no. Why not? Be- 
cause he then had love, light and understanding in 
him. 

I here introduce the apostles' creed, which embraces 
the fundamental principles of the Christian religion. 

apostles' ceeed. 

"I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of 
heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only son, 
our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, 
born of the virgin Mary, was crucified, dead and 
buried. He descended into Hell (Hades). The 
third day he rose from the dead. He ascended into 
heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God, from 
thence he shall come to judge the quick and the 
dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost ; the holy Cath- 
olic church ; the communion of saints ; the forgive- 
ness of sins; the resurrection of the body, and life 
everlasting." 

And now allow me to ask, if there is not em- 
braced within it, all that the teachings of Jesus 
require us to believe, as found in the four Gos- 
pels, in order to be saved ? Here are the fundamen- 
tal principles of the gospel, which if a man believes 
and obeys, he will please God and be saved. Yet 
how many who have held firmly these principles of 
truth, have been persecuted by professed teachers of 
righteousness, even since the days of Martin Luther; 
and that by those who called themselves reformers. 
Think you that such believers would have been thus 
treated by the apostles of our Lord ? We readily re- 



2\ T EW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



99 



ply, No, they would not. If believers embraced 
error, or erroneous doctrines, they instructed, ex- 
horted, and if necessary, rebuked them, but never 
persecuted, and in the apostles we yet have confi- 
dence; and thus have also confidence in their teach- 
ings. But how can we have confidence in men of 
an opposite character, or in the religious creeds for- 
mulated by such men? Poison worse than that of 
asps is under such teachers' tongues, and flows from 
their pens — and thus it is found in various religious 
creeds ; a little in this creed, more in another, and a 
great deal in the next. And Satan rejoices over it, 
and says, as with pleasure he views this lie in one 
creed, and that lie in another, — " That was time well 
spent when I assisted in preparing that creed." 
Why, by just one lie, I have hid the real love of God 
from tens of thousands of Christians, and they see 
through a glass more darkly, than that man Paul ever 
conceived of — But if the fellow who drafted that, 
had only obeyed the new commandment of the Naz- 
erene, I never could have used him." "Yes," he 
says, "and by that other lie how I have succeeded in 
separating christians into different sects, and making 
them hate one another" — so muses Satan, and re- 
joices. 

Christians, why don 't you seek, earnestly seek, the 
truth as it is in Christ ? And if you lack a proper 
love for the truth, ask God to bestow it upon you, 
that you may toil for it more persistently, than world- 
lings toil for earthly treasure. 

Since our heavenly Father delivered believers from 



100 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the absolute tyranny of the Roman church, many 
religious creeds have been promulgated; but the au- 
thors of some of them in their lives did not manifest 
the spirit of Christ by their works of love towards 
their fellow men, as did the first preachers of the 
gospel ; therefore, we should carefully scrutinize their 
teachings. 

A religious writer, whom I respect, speaking of 
Calvinism and Arminianism, says, — "The Christian 
church is about equally divided upon the question of 
Election vs. Free Grace, or Calvinism, vs. Arminianism, 
— a smaller number proportionally believing in Uni- 
versalism, or the final eternal salvation of all man- 
kind. Doubtless, all familiar with Scripture know, 
that each of these positions is supported by much 
Scripture, and yet, can they all be true ? * * * * 
Calvinism virtually says, — God is all wise ; He knew 
the end from the beginning. He had a plan which 
was to save a few, not from any merit in them, but 
of his sovereign choice he selected these to eternal 
life — all others to eternal death. He could as easily 
save all men, but He does not want to ; He is able, 
but unwilling to save any but a few. 

"Arminianism virtually says God loves all his 
creatures ; his tender mercies are over all his works. 
He is trying his utmost to save them all, but is not 
able. Only the very few, the 'little flock.' Sin 
slipped past him, entered the world at the outset, 
and has gained such a foothold, that only by the aid 
of his children can it be overcome, even in ages. 
As before suggested, each of these, although appar- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



101 



ently, antipodes, have some scriptural basis, and we 
believe, when properly arranged, are in harmony with 
each other." 

Let us analyze the foregoing quotation. The au- 
thor says, of Calvinism, Arminianism and Universal- 
ism, " Doubtless all familiar with Scripture know 
that each of these positions are supported by much 
Scripture." Scripture is the word of God; and 
God's word is truth. — John 17 : 17. And does 
God's truth support a lie? For there is certainly 
false doctrine in one of these creeds, as they directly 
contradict one another ; and in religion, or in spirit- 
ual things, false doctrine is a lie. And God's word 
does not support a lie in any degree. 

Again he says : 44 As before suggested, each of 
these, (creeds), although apparently antipodes, have 
some scriptural basis," &c. 

Now if there is any force in words, Calvinism is 
not only apparently antipodes to Arminianism, but 
positively so, taking the author's definition. Taking 
the author's own language, 44 Calvinism says — God 
could as easily save all men, but he does not want to ; 
he is able, but unwilling to save but a few. Armin- 
ianism says God is trying his utmost to save them 
all, but is not able ; only the very few." One says 
in direct words, that God is able, and the other says, 
that He is not able. One says, that God is unwilling 
to save the greater portion of mankind ; and the other 
says, that he is trying his utmost to do so. And yet the 
author says that both have some scriptural basis. 

There is a great deal of loose religious teaching, 



102 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



of which the above is quite a fair specimen. Yet, in 
proportion to the size of it, I think there is much 
religious truth in the work from which the foregoing 
quotation is taken. And to do the author justice, I 
will 'sajr, that his mistake arose from his desire to 
deal gently with the subject, lest he might offend, 
and thus injure the cause he was endeavoring to pro- 
mote. Yet I must add, that I think there was a lit- 
tle cowardice lurking about which caused him to un- 
wittingly apologize for a lie. 

In fact there is a hidden falsehood in both of the 
creeds; as one denies the love of God ; and the other 
denies his ability to accomplish what his infinite love 
moves him to do. 

Let us turn to the Scriptures, and hear what God 
says about his ability to perform his own will. " Re- 
member the former things of old ; for I am God, and 
there is none else ; I am God, and there is none like 
me ; declaring the end from the beginning, and from 
ancient times the things that are not yet done, say- 
ing my counsel shall stand, and I will do all my 
pleasure."— Tsa. 6 : 9, 10. See also 53 : 10. "And 
all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as noth- 
ing ; and he doeth according to his will in the army 
of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, 
and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What 
doest thou." — Dan. 4 : 35. Notice the words, " he 
doeth according to his will in the army of heaven 
and among the inhabitants of the earth." And also 
the words in the first quotation ; " My counsel shall 
stand." And then God adds, " I will do all my 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



103 



pleasure." Gocl don't say that he will only perform 
a part of his pleasure, and leave the rest undone. 
And is not God's pleasure his will ? And again, why 
does he teach us to ask, or pray, that his will may be 
done on earth, if it cannot be performed ? Are we 
not taught to say, " Thy kingdom come, and thy 
will be done on earth," &c. ? And Paul says of God, 
that he " worketh all things after the counsel of his 
own will." — Eph. 1 : 11. And then speaking of the 
return of the Lord Jesus Christ, the same apostle 
says of him, " Who shall change the body of our 
humiliation that it may be fashioned like unto his 
glorious body, according to the working whereby he 
is able even to subdue all things unto himself." — 
Phil. 3 : 21. Please observe the language — able even 
to subdue all things — nothing excepted. And then 
the word "even " is used, making it more sure. And 
we must remember, that now Jesus has all power 
both in heaven and on earth. So it is he who died 
for us, that is now subduing all things unto himself, 
the Father having delegated his own power to the 
Son for that purpose. — Matt. 28 : 18. Again, an 
angel with a message from heaven says, " For with 
God nothing shall be impossible." — Luke 1 : 37. 
and upon two occasions did Jesus declare that with 
God " all things are possible." — Matt. 19 : 26, and 
Mark 14 : 36. But Paul tells us that without faith 
in God it is impossible to please him. — Heb. 11 : 6. 
And no man can have that faith, if he questions any 
of God's attributes ; for if he doubts or questions 
God's infinite love, then in many cases he will doubt 



104 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



God's will to do. And if he questions God's omnip- 
otence, or omniscience, then he will doubt His ability 
to perform His own will.* 

Let us for a moment consider the circumstances 
when Jesus uttered the words, " With God all things 
are possible." He had just said to his disciples, " It 
is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a 
needle, than for a rich man to enter into the king- 
dom of God." The effect of these words was such, 
that we read, "When his disciples heard it they were 
exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be 
saved? " And we are told that Jesus then looked 
upon them ; that is, he considered their condition, as ' 
he well knew the effect of his words upon them, and 
evidently saw that they absolutely needed a declara- 
tion of truth, which he alone could utter, to strength- 
en and establish their faith in the Father and in him- 
self, and the hope of their own salvation, which had 
just received so heavy a shock from Ms previous 
declaration. Therefore, he plainly and directly said 
unto them, " With man this is impossible ; but with 
God all things are possible." And this declaration, 
by our blessed Redeemer, who came forth from God, 
and uttered the words of God, the Father, has doubt- 
less strengthened and confirmed the faith of thousands 
of believers, when beset by the adversary, and when 
apparently insurmoutable brrriers obstructed their 
path. Such has been their effect upon me ; and I 
humbly thank God that his Holy Son did utter them, 
and that the record of them has been preserved ; 
and furthermore, that our Saviour confirmed them, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



105 



when in the garden of Gethsemane, he prayed that 
the dreadful cup might be taken from him. — Mark 
U : 36. 

Brother, it was this faith in God's- ability to per- 
form all tkat he had promised, which sustained Abra- 
ham when commanded to offer up Isaac, — " By faith 
Abraham, being tried, offered up Isaac ; yea, he that 
had gladly received the promises, was offering up his 
only begotton son ; even he to whom it was said, 6 In 
Isaac shall thy seed by called," Heb. 11 : 17, 18. 
Many creed makers and others have descanted ex- 
tensively upon the faith of Abraham; but if they 
had really possessed it, think you that they would 
ever have written, or adopted the creeds they have ? 

WHO HAS LIGHT, AND WHO HAS IT NOT. 

Now allow me to ask which of the two it is, the 
man who has the nature of God in him, which is love, 
and thus loves his brother, manifesting that love by 
his treatment of his brother according to the teach- 
ings and practice of the apostles, or the man, who, 
pursuing the opposite course, shows that the love of 
God is not in him, that is really qualified to teach 
others the way of salvation, and then to prepare a 
religious creed for the instruction and guidance of 
the followers of Jesus ? Which of the two is it that 
keeps the new commandment of the Lord J esus, the 
former or the latter ? Does either have an evil eye ? 
If so, which is it? Is it the one who loves his 
brother, or is it the other party ? Please answer 
these questions before you read further. Now what 



106 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



says Jesus? — "When thine eye is single, thy whole 
body is full of light; but when it is evil, thy whole 
body is full of darkness — look therefore, whether the 
light that is in thee be not darkness," Luke 11 ; 34, 35. 
And John says, — "He thatsaithheisin the light and 
hateth his brother, is in the darkness even nutil now. 
He that loveth his brother, abideth in the light, and 
there is no occasion of stumbling in him," 1 John 2 : 
10, 11. Now can any one compose anything more 
direct and pointed than the latter quotation, for the 
purpose of saying, that if any man has not the love 
of God in him, (which causes him always to love his 
brother), he does not have light from God, but abides 
in darkness? Notice that the apostle says, such a 
man has alivays been in darkness. 

Yet we know that for many years after the com- 
mencement of the reformation, many of the Protest- 
ant sects and individuals persecuted one another for 
opinion's sake, and prominent in such persecutions 
were the leaders of the sects, — Yes, founders of them, 
creed-makers, etc. If such people possessed the lov- 
ing spirit of the apostles, they had a very different 
method of manifesting it. But we know such per- 
sons could not possess the apostolic spirit, nor be 
possessed by it — and not having the spirit of love, 
manifesting itself by its own works and fruits, they 
were destitute of gospel illumination. Such persons 
saw only the letter of the gospel, and that they did 
not understand correctly, but never received its 
spirit. Like those whom John describes, they said 
they were in the light, but hating their brother, they 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



107 



always continued in darkness, and never received the 
illumination of the Holy Spirit. And as the Hugue- 
nots were persecuted and driven from France by the 
Romanists, so were the Puritans driven from Eng- 
land by Protestants; and it is sad to relate, that the 
latter, after they reached the shores of New England, 
manifested too much of the same spirit toward oth- 
er believers. Now I have already shown from the 
Scriptures, that believers possessing such a spirit, are 
in darkness, and not in the light, and that the light 
of heaven is not in them. Then why should we so 
respect the creeds and dogmas of such men, or of 
their generation ? Such men may have had a zeal, 
but it was not according to knowledge ; and it fol- 
lows, that if they did not possess knowledge enough 
to properly direct their own zeal, they certainly did 
not possess enough knowledge to teach us — that is, 
if we really have the love of God in us — neither did 
they, even if we are destitute of that love; for even 
then, they would lead us into the ditch. Saul 
of Tarsus once had the same kind of zeal, and so 
did James and John, and at that time they had not 
the light. Again, we know that the slave trade, sell- 
ing prisoners of war into slavery, and slavery itself 
were all in vogue, in Protestant countries, with all 
their horrors and abominations for many years, so 
dim was the light of the gospel, and the love of God 
so small in the church. But that light in Wilber- 
force and others, at a later day, expelled those abom- 
inations. I have a disinclination to mention these 
facts, but my subject requires me to do so, that I 



108 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



may aid in liberating believers from the thralldom of 
their creeds ; or rather, the errors and falsehoods of 
those creeds, that they may receive the truth as it is 
in Christ. Please remember that the church is not 
yet out of the wilderness — and many believers are as 
much bound spiritually by Satan through the instru- 
mentality of creeds, as was that " daughter of Abra- 
ham" bound physically, mentioned in Luke 13 : 16, 
whom the Lord loosed from her infirmity. She was 
very much "bowed down," and so are they, — or so 
are you, if you are holding fast to a creed that is 
quite false in some particulars, even if there is some 
truth in it. 

Now coming directly to the point — why should 
Christians of the present day cling to, and thus be 
bound by creeds devised two or three hundred years 
ago, or more, by those who had less light than them- 
selves, and thus in a greater or less degree, be bound 
by errors therein, and thus shut out, and deprive 
themselves of a very large proportion of the light, 
truth, of the gospel of Jesus, and the nature of God ? 
Jesus says, — " The truth shall make you free." Then 
it is the truth we need — and as the truth sets us 
free, then error, being exactly of an opposite nature, 
binds us. Therefore, if your creed is erroneous, you 
are bound; and it is your absolute duty to free your- 
self from all error, or false doctrine that you may 
receive the truth as it is in Christ, that the Son may 
make you free indeed, John 8 : 14. 

But the Son will not set us free while Ave cling to, 
and press to our bosom some falsehood, or false prin- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



109 



ciple, which shuts out of our souls, or understanding, 
one, or many true principles ; for one truth begets 
another in the human mind; so no one can tell, (but 
God), how many truths a person robs himself of, 
when he fails to acquire one. 

Satan got up a religious creed for Eve, and Adam 
being persuaded by her to adopt it, we are now reap- 
ing its fruits ; and we have no reason to think that 
he has ever abandoned the business of creed-making. 
If a protestant doubts it, I would call his attention to 
that of theRoman church, and ask him to consider it — 
but he may not only consider that with profit, but many 
others. As the church of Christ, however weak or 
strong she may be, if she but lives, is the moral and 
spiritual light of the world; and as Satan loves 
darkness and hates the light, he studiously seeks to 
infuse his poison into her; and lies are his poison. 

I truly esteem and respect the reformers, and thank 
God that he called them to lead the church out of 
the wilderness, or rather, to commence the great 
work. And those men had their part of the Avork 
to perforin, and we also have ours ; and may we be 
as faithful, and if possible, more so than they. They 
emerged from great spiritual darkness loaded down 
and encumbered with all the false teachings of their 
day ; while we have been born and reared under a 
different influence. 

Experienced Christians are conscious of some facts 
or truths, which the inexperienced are not conscious 
of; and among them is the fact, that Satan by his 
remarkable craftiness and skill, often succeeds in 



110 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



using a Christian to accomplish his own purposes ; 
and that, of course, when the Christian is totally un- 
conscious of it. And he not only uses them, but 
their works also. On one occasion he attempted to 
use Peter against our Lord, when Jesus commenced 
showing his disciples, that he must suffer many things, 
&c— Mark 8 : 31-33. And we know that he is the 
great deceiver, so much so, that we are told, if it 
were possible, he would deceive the very elect. I do 
not say that he can use a perfect Christian ; but al- 
low me to ask if the adversary won't especially use 
every thing in you that belongs to him ? And every- 
thing in man, that is unlike God, is Satan's, and he 
will use it to accomplish his own purpose. And it 
was thus that in Peter's day he made the unstable 
and the unlearned use some portions of Paul's writ- 
ings as weapons against themselves. — 2 Peter 3 : 16. 
Satan used those parties, and they used Paul's words. 
And among other things Satan uses our ignorance 
of God's character, and our ignorance of the gospel ; 
that is, our ignorance of the real meaning of the 
written word, in his warfare against the church. 
Also our lack of faith, our fear of man, our love for 
the pleasures, and even for the comforts of this life, 
and every thing about us of like nature, including 
even our love for a wife, or child, sister, brother, &c, 
when we let him. Yes, he uses every thing, and 
every body within his reach, to especially hide the 
love of God from our view. And in this last effort, 
speaking with all due respect, it seems to me that he 
has used a great many religious teachers, by making 



NEW TESTA3IEXT THEOLOGY. 



Ill 



them talk to the people in such a manner, that they 
cause the latter to feel, that they are more condemned 
by Christ's coming into the world, than saved ; or in 
other words, that Christ's coming wrought their con- 
demnation, more than their salvation. I will here 
ask my readers if they have not felt thus ? And 
among other lies which Satan gets men to tell for 
him, is that he really don't exist — that he has no in- 
dividuality or identity, and that our evil passions, or 
inclinations constitute " all the devil there is." That 
shows generalship on his part ; as a good general 
prefers to have the enemy wholly ignorant of his 
presence, and even his existence. You may think 
that I talk considerably about Satan — so did J esus 
and his apostles ; and the former talked directly to 
him, and also to his subordinates as individuals. 

And as the adversary is now using so many per- 
sons, called preachers of the gospel, to teach that 
there is no such a being as a personal devil, and that 
what is called Satan and devils in the Scriptures, and 
unclean spirits, have not now, and never had any 
real identity, individuality or intellect, but are only 
the evil passions of a man, or the evil in a man, I 
think I ought to dwell upon this point a moment, or 
at least, long enough to call attention to some Scrip- 
ture which is totally subversive of any such theory. 

First, I would remark that the words devils and 
unclean spirits are evidently synonymous terms in 
the four gospels, as one may readily perceive by ref- 
erence to Mark 5 : 1-19. Turning to Luke 4 : 13, 
we find that Jesus, and some animate and intellec- 



112 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tual creature, called the devil, conversed together, 
and quoted Scripture to sustain and also to overthrow 
positions, as would an Orthodox and Unitarian min- 
ister, for instance, or any other two men. And in 
Mark 5 : 1-19, we find Jesus conversing, as it would 
appear, at first view, with the man himself, who was 
possessed with so many devils ; but upon closer ex- 
amination, we perceive that his conversation was 
with the evil spirits in the man, instead of the man 
himself; and that the vocal organs of the man were 
their mouth-piece, as the following colloquy shows : 
" What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of 
the Most High God ? I adjure thee by God, that 
thou torment me not. (For he had said unto him, 
come out of the man, thou unclean spirit). And he 
asked him "What is thy name ? And he answered, 
saving, My name is Legion ; for we are many." And 
in verse 12 it says, " And all the devils besought 
him," &c. And in Luke 4 : 41, we read, " And devils 
also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou 
art Christ, the Son of God." And Jesus always 
spoke of Satan as an intelligent living being. For 
instance, he said to Peter, on one occasion, " Simon, 
Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, [Gr., 
hath obtained you by asking,] that he may sift you 
as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith 
fail not." — Luke 22 : 31. And just before his cru- 
cifixion, we hear him saying of Satan, " Now shall 
the prince of this world be cast out." — John 12 : 31. 
And again, " Hereafter I will not talk much with 
you ; for the prince of this world cometh, and hath 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



113 



nothing in me." — 11 : 30. And again, 4t The prince 
of this world is judged." — 16 : 11. And in Luke 
13 : 16, Jesus says Satan had bound, for eighteen 
rears, the woman he healed. But I will not multi- 
ply authorities on this point ; yet that those who 
den}" the existence of Satan as an identical intelli- 
gent being, may take heed, lest they fall into his 
hands, and thus learn in the fooVs school, of his real 
identical existence, I refer them to 1 Cor. 5 : 5, and 
1 Tim. 1 : 20, where Paul says, that he had delivered 
certain persons over to Satan for certain purposes. 

Having digressed somewhat, we will now return 
to our subject, and proceed to show what real Elec- 
tion is ; for true election is not in conflict with any 
of God's attributes while false election is, and please 
remember that election is a means, and not an end. 

But while we examine this very important ques- 
tion, how much creed are you going to take along 
with you? If you wish. I am quite willing you 
should take all of the apostles' creed, if you will not, 
in your mind, usurp the place of Jesus, and pass 
judgment upon any class of individuals, when you 
come to the words " He shall come to judge the 
quick and the dead." From a proper regard for the 
feelings of believers in the Calvinistic theory of elec- 
tion, I shall here simply assert, that it virtually de- 
nies the infinite love of our Heavenly Father, and 
very ingeniously hides that love from the view of 
believers. But at the proper place, I will give it fur- 
ther attention. But it will require the unprejudiced 
and careful consideration of considerable Scripture. 



114 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



But while we consider this part of God's plan, let 
every one be careful that he don't so magnify, in his 
own mind, this one part, as to depreciate other parts. 
And all the while, please hold fast to the idea, that 
God's election is made simply to carry out his plan, 
and as an instrument in his hands for so doing, and 
that his plan was devised to accomplish his great and 
beneficent purpose. To the Scriptures already given 
respecting Christ is added the following : 1 Peter 1 : 
18-20, — "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not 
redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, 
from your vain conversation received by tradition 
from your fathers; but with the precious blood 
of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without 
spot; who verily was foreordained before the 
foundation of the world, but was manifest in these 
times for you;" 1 Peter 2 : 6, — "Wherefore also it is 
contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a 
chief corner-stone, elect, precious; and he that be- 
lieveth on him shall not be confounded ;" Heb. 5 : 4- 
10, — "And no man taketh this honor unto himself, 
but he that is called of God, as was Aaron, 
Called of God a high priest after the order of Mel- 
chizedek." 

The foregoing quotations relate to Christ, showing 
his election by the Father, before the creation of 
man, as the author of our salvation. The following 
relate to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and Jacob's de- 
scendants, — "And Joshua said unto all the people, 
Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, your fathers 
dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



115 



Terali, the father of Abraham, and the father of 
Nachor; and they served other gods. And I took 
your father Abraham from the other side of the 
flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, 
and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac ; and I 
gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau/' Josh. 21 : 2- 
4, — see Deut. 26 : 5. "Xow the Lord said to 
Abram, get thee out of thy country, and from thy 
kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land 
that I will show thee: and I will make thee a great 
nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name 
great, and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless 
them that bless thee, and curse him that eurseth thee; 
and in thee shall all the nations of the earth be 
blessed,"' Gen. 12:1-3. '-And God talked with 
him, saying, As for me, behold my covenant is with 
thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations,"' 
Gen. IT : 3, 4; and in verse 7 — "I will establish my 
covenant between me and thee, and thy seed after 
thee." In verse 19, — "And God said, Sarah thy 
wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt 
call his name Isaac : and I will establish my cov- 
enant with him for an everlasting covenant, and 
with his seed after him. And after this the Lord said 
to Rebekah, two nations are in thy womb, and two 
manner of people will be separated from thy bow- 
els; and the one people shall be stronger than the 
other people ; and the elder shall serve the younger," 
Gen. 25 : 23. "And not only this, but when Rebecca 
had conceived by one. even by our father Isaac, (for 
the children being not yet born, neither having done 



116 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



any good or evil, that the purpose of God according 
to election might stand, not of works but of him 
that calleth), it was said unto her, The elder shall 
serve the younger," Rom. 9 : 10-12. And then, 
in due course of time, we hear God saying to Jacob, 
— " And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth ; 
and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the 
east, and to the north, and to the south; and in 
thee, and in thy seed, shall all the families of the 
earth be blessed," Gen. 28 : 14. 

And after God had brought the people of Israel 
out of Egypt, Moses in addressing them, says, — 
" For thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God ; 
the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special 
people unto himself, above all people that are upon 
the face of the earth," Deut. 7:6; see Isaiah 42 : 
21-24: Lev. 24: 26. 

But if one has yet any doubt in regard to the ques- 
tion of God's having elected Israel, the following 
words, uttered only about 787 years before Christ, 
settle the whole matter, — "You only have I known 
of all the families of the earth; therefore, I will 
punish you for all your iniquities," Amos 3 : 2. 

Now the foregoing quotations are so clear, positive, 
direct and explicit, respecting, first, the election of 
Jesus, as the Saviour of the world ; and secondly, 
the election of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and also 
the descendants of the latter, that any comments to 
elucidate that point, would seem to be utterly super- 
fluous. But in regard to Jesus, please remember 
that he was elected, by the Father, as our High 



ItEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



117 



Priest and Saviour before the creation or foundation 
of the world; and also that Abraham was elected 
and chosen from a family of idolators, Josh. 24 : 2. 
From which, and also from the words of Paul, Rom. 
4 : 3-5, we may infer, that Abram was, when God 
first called him, also an idolator ; but " Abraham be- 
lieved God, and it was counted unto him for right- 
eousness," — and I especially request you to notice 
the promise in the 3d verse, — " And in thee shall all 
the families of the earth be blessed," in which we all 
have so deep an interest, whether we do, or do not 
know it at present ; Jesus being a descendant of 
Abraham, according to the flesh. 

And the election of the Son of God as our Re- 
deemer, and that of Abraham, and also of Israel as 
God's peculiar and chosen people are so clearly estab- 
lished by the foregoing Scripture, that when I con- 
sider the circumstances, situation and condition of 
Abraham, when called of God, I cannot here refrain 
from adding the words of Paul, — " For the gifts and 
calling of God are without repentance," Rom. 11 : 
29. — For I find nothing in the Scriptures showing 
that Abraham, when called, was any better than the 
rest of his father's family ; so that no one can say 
that Abraham was elected because he had repented 
of his sins, or because he was any better than other 
members of his father's idolatrous family. Again, 
we should consider the man and his own experience 
who uttered the words, — for the gifts and calling 
of God are without repentance. 

We know that Saul of Tarsus was a violent and 



118 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



cruel persecutor of the church of Christ ; and we 
have reason to believe, that he had often heard the 
gospel preached in all its purity and power at Jeru- 
salem, being a pupil of Gamaliel, and also taking a 
prominent part in the murder of Stephen. Yet Jesus 
called him in the midst of his wickedness ; and the 
following words to Ananias, testify to his election, — 
" But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way : for he 
is a chosen vessel, (Gr., vessel of election)^ unto me, 
to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and 
the children of Israel; for I will show him how 
many things he must suffer for my name's sake," 
Acts 9 : 15, 16. 

God chose Paul' for a certain purpose, or rather to 
effect a certain part of His purpose, which he had 
conceived before the foundation of the world, as he 
chose Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all Israel in like 
manner — and thus, as says James, — " Known unto 
God are all his works, from the beginning of time," 
and we will do well to keep it in mind. 

And here I will observe, that God, as we have 
reason to believe, did not choose the Israelites from 
partiality to that nation, nor because they were bet- 
ter than others, Deut. 9:4, 5, and would always 
keep his commandments. For knowing all things, 
he knew they would not. Therefore, it would seem 
that God might have chosen some other nation ; but 
he chose to honor Abraham and his descendants, not 
principally for their sakes, to make them a happy and 
powerful people, but to be subservient to his own 
comprehensive designs respecting the whole human 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



119 



family. And a person entertains a very restricted 
and erroneous view of this select nation, and of the 
dealings of God with it, who does not regard it as 
a beacon-light raised up and preserved as conclusive 
evidence of the existence of God, and of the truth 
of God's revelation to us. Therefore, when Freder- 
ick the Great requested his chaplain to give him, in 
as few words as possible, the groundwork of his re- 
ligious belief, he very properly and simply replied, 
Israel. 

But in this election of Israel there was no repro- 
bation of other nations ; on the contrary, Israel was 
elected as the medium of light and salvation for all 
other nations, as Jesus well knew when he said to 
the Samaritan woman, " Salvation is from the Jews." 
And when a Christian has a proper view of this peo- 
ple, and the beneficent and truly glorious purpose 
for which God raised them up, and the revolutions, 
changes, the long period of time, persecutions, rise, 
fall and disappearance of other more populous and 
powerful nations, through which God has preserved 
the Jews as a separate people, he is greatly surprised 
that the Christian church feels and manifests so lit- 
tle interest in the future well-being of that people, 
who are now blinded and broken off for our salva- 
tion. Instead of feeling and manifesting this inter- 
est, the church treats Israel as a cast-off shoe, which 
having served its purpose, is thrown aside. And 
here, allow me to say to the ministry, in true broth- 
erly kindness, that this, in a very great degree, arises 
from your system of preaching, the main drift and 



120 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



purport of which is how to keep out of hell, and to 
get into heaven — which is very necessary, as I readily 
admit. But to attain to that desideratum, we must 
first reach the point where we seek another's good, 
and not so much our own. " Love seeketh not her 
own." — 1 Cor. 13 : 5. " Let no man seek his own, 
but each his neighbor's good." — 1 Cor. 10 : 24, (Rev. 
Ed.) ; and then we will be in a heavenly condition, 
and thus be like Jesus and the angels in heaven ; 
and thus be fitted for the society of heaven, where 
all is love. 

Here allow me to call attention to the very great 
difference between the translations of the last quo- 
tation, in the old, and the revised edition. As in the 
old, it reads, " Let no man seek his own, but every 
man another's wealth ; " while in the latter, it reads, 
" Let no man seek his own, but each his neighbor's 
good." And which is most in harmony with the 
spirit of the gospel of Christ, as expounded by him 
and his apostles — the latter, or the former transla- 
tion ? And from the time of King James' transla- 
tion until now, with which translation has the prac- 
tice of the church most harmonized? Brethren, in 
the revised translation of that sentence, I perceive a 
bright indication that the church is yet marching out 
of the wilderness ; as in the translation of that sen- 
tence, the last translators certainly had more light 
than the first respecting the great principle taught 
therein. And was not that light in their hearts, 
more than in any superior intellectual attainments 
above those of their predecessors ? And notice, the 



MEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



121 



church must have the light in order to advance ; for 
if one " Walks in darkness, he knows not whither he 
goeth." And if the blind lead the blind, both shall 
fall into the ditch. And now, in candor let me ask, 
if many believers haA^e not been very badly ditched 
since King James' day, by seeking another's wealth, 
instead of his good ? See also the improved transla- 
tion of Luke 16 : 9. But we may speak of this here- 
after. We must return to Israel for a while. 

If one wishes further authorities to establish the 
election of Israel, he may turn to Ezek. 20 : 5 ; Deut. 
4 : 37 ; 7 : 6 ; 10 : 15 ; 1 Kings 3 : 8 ; 1 Chron. 16 : 
13; Psa. 105:6; 33:12; 105:43; 106 : 5 ; 135 : 
4 ; Isa. 41 : 8, 9 ; 43 : 20 ; 44 : 1, 2 ; 45 : 4. And 
many other references might be given ; but they 
would be superfluous. In truth, God was their king, 
and they were his people or kingdom. And he was 
their God, and therefore they were styled his church. 
And as God begat, or especially brought the nation 
into existence, he is termed their Father, and they 
are called his family and children, &c. 

And upon the question of election, as it signifies 
to select, choose, or to set apart for a certain pur- 
pose, we might refer to Moses, David, Cyrus, John 
the Baptist, and others ; but we will pass over all 
such instances, and come at once to Jesus' selection 
of the twelve apostles. 

And we have a most positive case of election 
established by Christ's own acts and words. And as 
the Father elected Israel for a certain purpose, so 
did the Son elect the twelve. Jesus well knew the 



122 HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

twelve, and where they were, before he called them. 
Think you that he came upon them by chance, as he 
passed along — Matthew sitting at the receipt of 
custom ; James and John in a ship with Zebedee 
their father ; and Peter and Andrew fishing ? and 
Nathaniel, to whom Jesus said, in reply to the ques- 
tion, " Whence kuowest thou me?" — "Before that 
Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig- 
tree, I saw thee." Certainly, the case of Nathaniel 
alone is a negative reply to the question. See John 
1 : 48. But observe the words of Jesus to the 
twelve. " Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, 
and appointed you, that ye should go and bear fruit, 
and that your fruit should abide." — John 15 : 16, 
Again verse 19, " I chose you out of the world." If 
a person won't believe that this was an election, I am 
totally at a loss to know what language would cause 
him to believe. And if he is a Christian he dare not 
question either the intelligence, or the veracity of 
the speaker. 

Yes, my Calvinistic friend, here you certainly 
have election of the most positive character and na- 
ture ; but I thank God, that I am able to truthfully 
say, that it is neither yours, nor John Calvin's kind 
of election, — and that, for the very plain and simple 
reason, that no one was reprobated in it, or by it ; 
either approximately, or remotely. What does 
Jesus say he chose them for? Was it that any 
one of God's creatures, especially those made in his 
own image, shall be eternally damned ? Far from it, 
— says he, — " I chose you, and appointed you, that 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



123 



you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit shall 
abide, or remain." 

Above I have just used the word damned, and I 
have used it, because it is used by Calvinists and 
others; but I have never been able to discover the 
the corresponding word in the New Testament, in the 
original tongue. I find the word xptva), to judge, 
and xaraxpcvco, to condemn, with their variations 
as verbs, in the original; but no word signifying 
damn or damned, or any noun signifying damnation. 
Yet I will admit that they may be very proper terms 
to accompany Calvinistic reprobation, as they all 
seem to be of the same nature and character, and 
unquestionably, all primarily originated with the 
same individual. 

And I will here remark, that I am unable to find 
either the word damn, damned, damnation, or dam- 
nable in the revised edition of the New Testament, 
which is another indication, that the church is yet 
marching forth out of the wilderness into the clear 
light of the gospel. 

Some time after choosing the twelve, the Lord 
chose seventy others, and sent them forth, Luke 10 : 
1. Neither did that election reprobate any other 
person, any more than did the previous election of 
the twelve reprobate the seventy. And these sev- 
enty were directed by our Lord to say to the peo- 
ple, that the kingdom of God had come nigh unto 
them. But the preaching of the gospel, and thus 
opening that kingdom to man, was reserved for the 
twelve until the day of Pentecost, and subsequent 



124 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



to the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of the 
Lord Jesus, when Peter stood forth with the other 
apostles, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, 
preached salvation to the Jews. Please notice, that, 
according to the apostles' views at that time,, and for 
some subsequent time, Jesus had died, risen and as- 
cended into the heavens, to save and exalt to glory 
Israelites alone. In the minds of the apostles the 
Hebrews only were the elect, and continued to be so 
until God's revelation of the truth on that point at 
Joppa, and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Cor- 
nelius and his friends soon after,, convinced Peter 
that the middle wall of partition between Jew and 
Gentile had been removed. Up to this time the 
disciples were stringent reprobationists (in one 
sense), holding that the Hebrews only were the 
elect, and all the Gentiles reprobates ; and without 
doubt actually believing that Christ had suffered, 
died and risen from the dead, solely for Israel's sal- 
vation, although Jesus had said to them, " Go ye into 
all the world and preach the gospel to the whole cre- 
ation," Mark 16 : 15 ; Acts 10 : 11. Yet it seems 
that by reason of the influence and prejudice of 
early education, yet in harmony with God's own plan 
and due time, the apostles actually withheld the gos- 
pel, fraught with eternal life, from all other nations, 
save their own. And so strong was the theory of a 
certain kind of reprobation in the Christian church 
that we read, — " And when Peter was come up to Jeru- 
salem, they that were of the circumcision contended 
with him saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircum- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



125 



cised, and didst eat with them," Acts 11 : 2, 3. In 
short, his quasi Calvinistic brethren accused him of 
the most dreadful kind of heresy, because he had 
unlocked, or pretended to unlock, as they thought, 
the kingdom of heayen to those reprobated Gentiles. 
But it would seem that Peter had anticipated this, 
and was quite ready for trial, haying six brethren 
with him, who were present when Cornelius and his 
friends were gloriously converted to Christ, and bap- 
tized with the Holy Spirit. And thus at the closing 
of his defense, we hear him summing up in these 
words, — "And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost 
fell on them, even as on us at the beginning. And I 
remembered the word of the Lord, how that he said, 
John indeed baptized with water ; but ye shall be 
baptized with the Holy Ghost. If then God gave 
unto them the like gift, as he did also unto us, when 
we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, 
that I should withstand God ? " Acts 11 : 16-18. 
And then, we are told, that as soon as the church 
heard Peter's defence, they held their peace, and glori- 
fied God, saying, — " Then to the Gentiles also, hath 
God granted repentance unto life," — that is, unto 
the reprobated. And at that moment reprobation 
spread its dark wings and fled away to the realms 
from which it came, but to return again in a differ- 
ent dress. But election, true election, remained, as 
will evidently appear from the following quotations 
from the teachings of the apostles after the eveut 
just described, — " Blessed be the God and Father of 
our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with 



126 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in 
Christ ; even as he chose us in him before the foun- 
dation of the world, that we should be holy, and 
without blemish before him in love ; having foreor- 
dained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ 
unto himself, according to the good pleasure, to the 
praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely be- 
stowed upon us in the Beloved," Eph. 1 : 3-6. 
" But ye are an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy 
nation, a people of God's own possession, that ye 
may show forth the excellencies of him who called 
you out of darkness into his marvelous light," 1 
Peter 2 : 9. And in chapter 1, verse 2, Peter ad 
dresses Christians as the " Elect according to the 
foreknowledge of God the Father," etc., and Paul 
says, — " For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained 
to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he 
might be the first-born among many brethren; and 
whom he foreordained, them he also called ; and 
whom he called, them he also justified ; and whom 
he justified, them he also glorified. And we know 
that to them who love God all things work together 
for good, even to them that are called according to 
his purpose," Rom. 8 : 28-30. The last quotation is 
in the most terse, direct, and beautiful lan- 
guage, from which there is no refuse language to be 
cleared away, before one can come to the truth. 
And so direct and clear is the apostle's language, 
that it has required a vast amount of special plead- 
ing to conceal the truth therein contained, from the 
minds of believers. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



127 



Both. Arminians and Calvinists should be willing 
to come to the light, as it is in the gospel of Christ, 
even if it knocks away every plank in their creeds, 
except the fundamental principles of Christianity, 
which will stand forever ; and so should all Christ- 
ians, and thus, as far as within our power, accom- 
plish the fulfillment of the prayer of our Saviour, 
that we may all be one, even as he and the Father 
are one ; and not oppose it by what is false, either in 
creeds, or elsewhere. 

It cannot be shown that the foregoing language 
was addressed particularly to any class of Christ- 
ians, but on the contrary, everything shows that the 
language is addressed to, and embraces both Gentile 
and Jewish Christians. So it follows, that there is 
equally an elect from among the Gentiles, as well as 
from among the Jews. But the words of James, 
Acts 15 : 14, — " To take out of them a people for his 
name," contributes much to establish the doctrine of 
an election from among the Gentiles — please read 
from verse 14 to 18. 

And to the above I will add a few sayings of our 
Lord, — "Fear not little flock, for it is your Father's 
good pleasure to give you the kingdom," Luke 12 : 32. 
Again, — "Father, I thank thee that thou hast hid 
these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed 
them unto babes." Now reader, without any forced 
application of Scripture, but by a fair and unbiased 
and impartial use of it, I have shown that there is an 
election by the Father, first of his own Son ; secondly, 
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the descendants 



128 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



of the last as a nation, from whom came Christ ac- 
cording to the flesh — and that all these elections 
were made to effect the purposes of God. Then I 
have shown yon, that Jesus elected his twelve apos- 
tles; and that they were also elected for a certain 
purpose. And lastly, I have shown by the testimony 
of Jesus and of some of the apostles, that all the 
saints of God are elected, but I have not yet shown 
for what purpose they are elected. This will follow 
in due course. 

The great scheme of salvation is sometimes termed 
the gospel-ship of Zion. And you know, that in 
nautical life sailors are frequently compelled to let 
some of the sails fly in the wind to liberate and right 
the ship ; but those are not lost, as they can be 
drawn into place again. And now we have arrived 
at a point where you must liberate your minds from 
every principle in your creeds, except the fundamen- 
tal principles of the gospel of Christ, our Lord. And 
that you may be safe, by not taking too much of your 
creed along, I advise you to confine yourself strictly 
to what is called the apostles' creed, substituting 
Hades for Hell, as there is nothing to show that our 
Lord ever descended into Gehenna. Forget every 
other principle of doctrine, and let them be tempo- 
rarily suspended, that you may be free to receive the 
truth, as you can afterwards recall such suspended 
principles, if you should ever need them after we 
finish this examination, or search for the truth. And 
as our beacon-light, let us never forget, that God is 
love. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



129 



I will first present a few passages of Scripture for 
your consideration. The first are the words of Jesus 
as he was about to raise Lazarus from among the 
dead, and were addressed to Martha, sister of Laza- 
rus. " Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection 
and the life \ he that believeth in me, though he 
were dead, yet shall he live." John 11 : 25. 

" For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the 
just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, 
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened in the 
spirit, in which also he went and preached unto the 
spirits in prison ; which sometime (or aforetime), 
were disobedient when once the long-suffering of God 
waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was pre- 
paring," &c. 1 Pet. 3 : 18-20. " For this cause was 
the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that 
they might be judged according to men in the flesh, 
but live according to God in the spirit." 1 Peter 
4: 6. 

Now reader, please to keep all of your precon- 
ceived ideas of the condition of the dead, and of 
what God can, or cannot do for their salvation after 
the death of the body, far away at a safe distance, 
and all of your former teachings about it, that they 
may not interfere with, and bias your decision ; and 
tell me who did the preaching which Peter mentions 
in the verses just quoted. Decide this question just 
as if you were reading this Scripture for the first 
time in your life. 

The Papists and Episcopalians hold that Christ 
did the preaching ; and all other Protestant teachers, 
with but few exceptions, hold that it was Noah. 



130 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



The learned commentator, Adam Clark, says of 
the last verse quoted, " This is a most difficult verse." 
Now the cause of its being so very difficult for him 
to comprehend, was that he misunderstood the 18th, 
19th and 20th verses of chapter 3 just quoted, hold- 
ing with many others, that Noah did the preaching. 
And this he asserts in his comments on those verses ; 
although in his remarks upon verse 6, chapter 4, he 
says, " The apostle seems in the latter verse to refer 
to what he had said in the 18th and 19th verses of 
chapter 3. " 

There are a number of incontrovertible objec- 
tions to the proposition that Noah did the preaching 
referred to. 

1st. Noah had never been put to death in the flesh, 
nor had he been quickened in the spirit ; therefore, 
he don't answer to the description given of the 
preacher. 

2nd. He had no spirits in prison to whom he could 
preach. 

3rd. He did not have the gospel to preach to them; 
as no man had it before the coming of the Son of 
God. And He it was of whom it was said, " I will 
utter things which have been kept secret from the 
foundation of the world." Matt. 13 : 35. And 
what were they, but the secret things of the gospel 
of Christ? And in verse 17, Jesus says to his disci- 
ples, " For verily, I say unto you, that many proph- 
ets and righteous men have desired to see those 
things which ye see, and have not seen them ; and to 
hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard 
them," 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 131 



4th. Noah could not preach to the dead, as he 
could not go into Hades to reach them, as could 
Jesus, who being put to death in the flesh, but raised 
up by the power of God, did during the period be- 
tween his crucifixion and ascension, go into Hades 
and preach the gospel to those who lived in the time 
of Noah, anterior to the flood, which swept them 
from the earth. And Peter gives us the reason, as 
follows : " That they might be judged according to 
men in the flesh, but live according to God in the 
spirit." That is, that having heard the gospel, they 
might be judged by the gospel, as we will be ; and 
might also live in accordance with the will of God 
in the spirit world. 

In Acts 1, we read that for the space of forty 
days, Jesus frequently appeared unto his disciples, 
and taught them concerning the kingdom of God. 
That is, he taught them the gospel ; but he was not 
all of that forty days with them. Then what was he 
doing ? We may safely reply, that he was about his 
Father's business somewhere in the spirit world ; and 
among other important teachings given to the apos- 
tles, he probably told them of the Father's plan of 
salvation for the antediluvians, and for all others, 
who die, and have died, ignorant of the gospel, and 
that he had already preached the gospel in the spirit 
world — in Hades — as his disciples were to do in the 
natural world ; that all those who had passed away 
previous to the gospel's being preached on the earth, 
might hear it, and either accept or reject it. And 
we also add, that all who have and shall pass away 



132 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

without hearing the gospel in this life, may there hear 
it; that, as Peter says, they may be judged in 
like manner as those who hear the gospel in this life ; 
that is, by the gospel, Jesus' words, which he says 
shall judge men in the last day. In truth, in chap- 
ter 4, verse 6, Peter positively asserts that the gos- 
pel was preached to the dead, when he says, " For 
this end (or purpose) was the gospel preached even 
to the dead," &c, after having said in verse 5 that 
God was then ready to judge both the living and 
the dead. That assertion is not the less .true be- 
cause it is found in the apostle's train of reasoning; 
but thereby gathers additional force, because it. is 
uttered as a well known and admitted fact. And 
thus, it is to be noticed, that Peter speaks of it as 
something he was quite familiar with, and as some- 
thing well known to Christians. 

Remember that Noah was not a preacher of the 
gospel, although he was a preacher of righteousness ; 
and so were many others under the old dispensation, 
and also sufferers for righteousness sake ; "yet re- 
ceived not the promise, God having provided some 
better thing for us, that apart from us they should 
not be made perfect." 

I will here mention another error that is veiy prev- 
alent in the Protestant church ; and that is, that in 
the New Testament we have all the gospel ; which 
error is disproved by the following in Mark 4 : 33, 
34 — " And without a parable spake he not unto 
them but privately to his oavii disciples expounded 
he all things." So it follows, that he explained all 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



133 



the parables to his disciples ; and I think every can- 
did person will admit that the explanation of the 
parables formed a portion of the gospel ; and yet 
there are only a portion of them explained in the 
Testament. Therefore, it follows, that a part of the 
gospel is lacking there. Again, we have only a few 
words of the instructions given by the Savionr to the 
disciples after his resurrection ; although we read 
that he was with them at various times teaching 
them, " Speaking the things concerning the king- 
dom of God." 

And there seems to be a principle of doctrine and 
practice involved in the following language which 
no one now seems to comprehend, where Paul says, 
" Else what shall they do who are baptized for the 
dead ? If the dead are not raised at all, why then 
are they baptized for the dead ? " — 1 Cor. 15 : 29. 
That there then was a practice, or rite, of Christians 
being baptized for the benefit of them who had died, 
is too evident from the language used to be denied ; 
which proves that even man could, at that time, con- 
tribute something towards the welfare of those who 
had passed away. And if mortal man, who is a be- 
liever in Jesus, can do something in that direction 
for the dead, who is competent to say, that God can 
do nothing for one of his creatures, who has passed 
on to the spirit world ; or in the language of Peter, 
for one who has " Put off this tabernacle ? " — 2 Pet. 
1 : 14. 

Again, any intelligent and candid Christian will 
readily admit, that the most intimate disciples of our 



134 NEW TEST AMENT THEOLOGY. 



Lord did not comprehend the scheme of salvation 
that is, the gospel, until after, his resurrection, and 
the descent of the Holy Spirit upon them on the day 
of Pentecost. Thus it seems, that prior to his cru- 
cifixion, Jesus was laying a good foundation for the 
gospel in the minds of his disciples by his works and 
teachings, or in other words, he gave them the fun- 
damental principles thereof, yet in such a manner, 
that it remained for the Holy Spirit to recall and 
elucidate them, and guide Christians into all the 
truth. And it is quite evident from the record, that 
at that time, they did not comprehend them. See 
Luke 24, and Acts 1. Yet the Protestant ministry 
tell us, that we have all the gospel in the New Tes- 
tament. And if that is so, where is the necessity of 
listening to their preaching Sunday after Sunday, 
and year after year ? And if so, where is the neces- 
sity of so many denominational, and so called theo- 
logical seminaries and theological doctors? The Ro- 
man church says she has the gospel ; and that the 
true church is the only custodian of the gospel on 
the earth. The first proposition I deny ; but the last 
I fully assent to. 

But we have too many of the false teachings of 
Rome yet left ; and they should be weeded out of 
the church of Christ as fast as possible ; and all her 
true teachings which have not yet been accepted, 
should be received, and not rejected because a church 
that once had the pure gospel of Jesus and the 
apostles, has adulterated it with lies, or in other lan- 
guage, false teachings. For when a person has lost 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



135 



any thing, does he seek it where he once had it, or 
where he never had it ? You can answer the ques- 
tion without my aid. Therefore, don't reject a truth 
with what is a conclusive reply with many, — " The 
Catholic church, or the Roman Catholic church, be- 
lieves that." Had you not better reject the word 
Catholic from her title, instead of rejecting a truth 
she holds, and which may be new for you ; or if old, 
rejected by you ? 

But as the first reformers were members of that 
church, and as she always devised means to increase 
her power and render it absolute over both the intel- 
lect and wills of men ; and as those means especially 
included her dogmas and doctrines, those reformers 
might very naturally bring with them some of Rome's 
false doctrines and errors. And now unprejudiced 
reader, (and please see that you are so), suffer me to 
ask if there is any thing that Rome has ever devised, 
that is so well calculated to subserve her interests, 
and through terror to perpetuate her power, as the 
doctrine of eternal damnation and an eternal hell of 
torment, combining with it, as she did, the further 
doctrine, that she had the absolute power to consign 
men to such damnation and hell, or to absolve them 
from it ? Devoted men and women, and believers in 
the power and authority of the church, could calmly 
anticipate, and then endure the excruciating tortures 
of the wheel and of fire, as they were but tempora- 
ry ; but the torments of Rome's hell were eternal. 
And combined with her hell, the power of consign- 
ing to it, and the power of absolving from it, was 



136 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



also her further power of delivering a soul from the 
ante-room of her hell, when once there, and elevating 
that soul to heaven. That ante-room was named 
purgatory, which name it still bears. 

Now we have every reason to- believe that the re- 
formers endeavored to eliminate false doctrines from 
the Roman creed, and to retain the true. But the 
influence of their education in that church was yet 
upon them; and we have no reason to believe the 
unction of the Holy Spirit rested upon them, as it 
did formerly upon the primitive Christians ; and es- 
pecially, upon the apostles. But taking their Bibles 
as their guide, they did the best they could ; and 
thus accepted the Roman doctrine of eternal dam- 
nation and an eternal hell for the wicked, and re- 
jected that of Purgatory and the power of any man, 
or body, of men to remit sins or to retain them ; and 
consequently, that of absolving from hell, and con- 
signing to it. And while the reformers denied the 
power of the church either to remit, or to retain 
sins, they also denied that Jesus ever conferred that 
power upon any man or body of men. When men 
assert that they accept a book for their instruction 
and guidance, they are not justified in taking a part 
of it and rejecting the balance. Here I give the 
words of Jesus bestowing upon the apostles the 
power to either retain sins, or remit them ; or in 
other words, to do both the one and the other. The 
following language was addressed to his disciples by 
Jesus, after his resurrection, — "Peace be unto you ; 
as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you ; and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 137 



when he had said this, he breathed on them, and 
saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost ; whose- 
soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them ; 
and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained," 
John 20 : 21-23. But he had previously said to 
them, — " Verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall 
bind on earth shall be bound in heaven ; and whatso- 
ever ye shall loose on earth, shall be loosed in heaven," 
Matt. 18 : 18. 

Now I ask if the doctrine of an eternal hell, and 
eternal damnation is as plainly taught either by Je- 
sus, or by his apostles ? I think the reformers 
brought the word damnation along with them from 
the Roman church, and king James' translators re- 
ceived it from them, and thus it found its way into 
the Testament, instead of the proper word condem- 
nation. 

With the two words, salvation and damnation, the 
ministry make a very quick and summary disposition 
of a man's eternal welfare ; as it is either all heaven, 
or all hell, according to the prevalent religious teach- 
ings of the present day. They tell us, that al- 
though he may have generally led a good life, 
if one single sin remains unrepented of, and thus 
unforgiven, that one sin sends a man to eternal wretch- 
edness and misery, although he may be very suddenly 
and unexpectedly deprived of life, and thus quickly 
hastened into eternity ; while on the contraiy, they 
teach that if a man leads the most wicked life of 
many years, ever hating that which is good, and 
practicing all that is evil, yet if he truly repents of 



138 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



his sins at the last hour of his life, for instance, at 
the close of a long sickness, or upon the gallows, 
then he is forgiven, and exalted to heaven. 

And that kind of doctrine has often troubled very 
sincere and devoted Christians — not so much in re- 
gard to their own salvation, as in regard to that of 
their own children, and of worthy friends and neigh- 
bors, who have suddenly passed away without appar- 
ent repentance. And when they read that God is 
love, they wonder how these things can be. But they 
are told not to question the ways of God, as they are 
past finding out. And there are many believers who 
are ready to say, but from fear of offending God re- 
main silent, "I would not treat anyone in that man- 
ner, and I wonder why God does so ?" Let us exam- 
ine this question, and ascertain if it is really so. 
But it is time to ask about that creed of yours. Is 
it flying loose in the wind ? If not, let go the ropes, 
as you may have been hauling in some of it. 

For one I am quite unwilling to see the eternal wel- 
fare of my fellow-men disposed of in the awkward and 
summary manner above mentioned, and in a manner 
so discordant with the love, wisdom, justice, mercy 
and power of our heavenly Father. And therefore, 
I propose to let the light shine, which God has be- 
stowed upon me, in regard to our common salvation 
through the Lord Jesus Christ. And I trust that in 
this effort, I shall have the love of God and man in 
my heart, and not the fear of man before my eyes. 

And as we proceed, I pray God that he may de- 
liver you from the influence of erroneous teachings, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



139 



and that you may continually obtain a clearer view 
of his nature, and of his love to man, and of his 
intentions respecting him from the creation. 

THE BRIDE OF CHRIST. 

First, the church should understand, that from the 
Day of Pentecost, when Peter preached the first gos- 
pel sermon, until the present time, God has been tak- 
ing out from among men a " people for his name ;" 
commencing with the Jews, and extending that great 
work to, and among the Gentiles ; and that this se- 
lect people are the same people whom Paul describes 
as the bride of Christ ; and also the same for whom 
Jesus prayed, when he said, " I pray for them ; I 
pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast 
given me — neither for these only do I pray, but for 
them also that believe on me through their word ; 
that they all may be one ; even as thou, Father, art 
in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, 
that the world may believe that thou hast sent me ;" 
and then he adds,—" And the glory which thou hast 
given me, I have given them, that they may be one, 
even as we are one ; I in them, and thou in me, that 
they may be perfected in one ; that the world may 
know that thou didst send me, and lovedst them, 
even as thou lovedst me," John 17. 

We must not mark out in our minds a method, or 
course for God to pursue in saving the world, but Ave 
must accept the plan laid down by Jesus and the 
apostles. Neither must we restrict the signification 
of the term world in the foregoing quotation to one 



140 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



generation of men somewhere in the future and the 
generations following ; but in the term world we 
must embrace all men from the beginning to the end 
of time, except those for whom Jesus then prayed, 
and excepted out of the world in his prayer — please 
read and carefully consider the whole prayer, and 
notice, that Jesus says he does not pray for the world, 
and also, that this select, or elect number, " are not 
of the world." See Acts 15 : 14-18, where James 
speaks of God's taking out from among the Gentiles 
a people for his name. 

Formerly I believed, and earnestly desired, that 
all the members of the various religious sects would, 
in this life, see and believe alike ; and that thus the 
prayer of our Lord, that we might be one, as he and 
the Father are one, would be accomplished, believ- 
ing that this would be accomplished before the man- 
ifestation of our Saviour to them who desire his ap- 
pearing. But when I became more familiar with the 
teachings of Jesus and the apostles, and was taught 
by the Holy Spirit, I perceived that it could not be 
until the return of the Saviour; for it is then, 
and not till then, they receive the glory which Je- 
sus requests the Father to bestow upon them. Again, 
Jesus says, — "And as were the days of Noah, so 
shall be the presence of the Sou of man. For as in 
those which were before the flood, they were eating 
and drinking, marrying and given in marriage until 
the day that Noah entered into the ark, and they 
knew not until the flood came, and took them all 
away, so shall be the presence of the Son of man." 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



141 



See Matt. 24 : 36-46. " Howbeit when tlie Son of 
man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" Luke 
18 : 8. These words plainly show that instead of 
the world's believing and "being converted previous 
to his manifestation ; that at that time there will be 
very little living faith upon the earth. But the 
prayer of our Lord must be granted, for he tells us 
that all he asked of the Father was granted, because 
lie always did those things that pleased the Father. 
Therefore, that union and unity of the elect of God 
and of the Son, must take place at some future time — 
but when ? When God has taken out a people from 
the world, that is, from among all mankind, "for his 
name," and for the bride of his Son, who loved us 
and gave himself for us. And when that is 
done, the Bridegroom will receive his bride, and 
crown and encircle her with that glory which will 
cause the world to believe * * * " Behold the 
bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him" * * * 
" Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor 
the hour in which the Son of man cometh." 

By reason of the kind regard of God for the Is- 
raelites, their relation to him, his protection ex- 
tended to them, and his covenant with them, 
God speaks of Israel as his wife, Jer. 31 : 32; 3 : 20; 
Ezek. 16 : 31, 32 : Hos. 2 : 2. And thus on account 
of the peculiar relation of the true church, composed 
alone of spiritual believers, to Christ, she is called 
his bride, Rev. 21 : 29, although at present simply es- 
poused to Christ; and for this cause, Paul says, — 
" For the husband is the head of the wife, even as 



142 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Christ is the head of the church ; and he is the Sav- 
iour of the body. Therefore, as the church is sub- 
ject unto Christ, so let the wives be unto their own 
husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your 
wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave 
himself for it, that he might sanctify and cleanse it 
with the washing of the water by the word, that 
he might present it unto himself a glorious church, 
not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing ; but 
that it be holy and without blemish," * * * * This 
is a great mystery ; but I speak concerning Christ 
and the church," Eph. 5 : 23-32. " And hath raised 
us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly 
places in Christ Jesus," Eph. 2 : 6. 

And in the following verses we are told for what 
subsequent purpose Christ does all this for the 
church; and if you carefully and prayerfully con- 
sider the matter, you will find that it is all for the 
very same purpose for which Christ asks in his 
prayer, — "That the world may believe, etc." And 
here I must remark, that it is either through igno- 
rance, or a lack of faith, or both, that a Christian 
for one moment, doubts the granting of any request 
made by Jesus of the Father ; as his will is his Fa- 
ther's will, and his desire, his Father's desire. 

And now, in connection with the last verses 
quoted, read the following, 44 That in the ages to 
come he might show the exceeding riches of his 
grace (favor), in his kindness towards us, through 
Jesus Christ. That in the dispensation of the ful- 
ness of times, he might gather together in one, all 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



143 



things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and 
which are on earth, even in him," Eph. 2:7; 1 : 10. 

What think you ? Does not this last quotation, 
or rather the teachings of Paul therein contained, har- 
monize well with the prayer of our Lord, — " That the 
world may believe that thou hast sent me ?" But 
there is much more Scripture of the same tenor ; and 
by the aid of the Holy Spirit, we will so use it as to 
show, that our God is a God of infinite love, truth 
justice, mercy, wisdom and power, which I am, in 
duty, obliged to say, the large mass of our religious 
teachers first directly assert, and then deny by their 
teachings. And my object in making this assertion, 
is to cause such teachers, and all others, who prize 
the truth, to closely examine and ascertain whether 
my assertion is true. For, as I have before asserted, 
our teachings should harmonize, not simply with 
one, but with all the attributes of God, as the gos- 
pel of Jesus Christ comes from the Father, and con- 
sequently, is of the nature of the Father, and thus is 
in harmony with that nature, and not simply with a 
portion of it. 

Here follows a quotation from Paul's teachings, 
which I will first give entire, and follow with some 
comments. "The Spirit beareth witness with our 
spirit, that we are the children of God ; and if chil- 
dren then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with 
Jesus Christ, if so be that Ave suffer with him, that 
we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that 
the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to 
be compared with the glory which shall be revealed 



114 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation 
waiteth for the revealing, (or manifestation), of the 
sons of God. For the creation was subjected to vanity, 
not willingly, but by reason of him who subjected it 
in hope ; because the creation itself shall also be de- 
livered from the bondage of corruption into the free- 
dom of the glory of the children of God: for we 
know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth 
in pain together until now." — Rom. 8 : 16-22. First 
we should notice, that Paul asserts that true Chris- 
tians will be glorified with Christ, if they suffer with 
him. And then he extols the glory which shall be 
revealed in and through such Christians. And this 
is the very same glory signified in the prayer of Jesus 
for his followers, John IT, when he says, " The glory 
thou hast given me, I have given them, that the 
world may believe that thou hast sent me." 

Yes, the glory that Jesus mentions, and that which 
Paul describes are the same ; and Paul tells us that 
the creation of God is not only earnestly waiting for 
the revealing of the saints of God, the glorified 
church, the sons of God ; but that when that reve- 
lation is made, then the creation itself will be deliv- 
ered from that bondage of corruption, by which the 
world is held imprisoned and suffering with pain, 
into the freedom of the glory of the sons of God. 
And then we are very naturally led to ask, when we 
consider the present teaching of the church respect- 
ing the future and eternal condition of the unbe- 
liever, what does Paul mean by this language ? How 
is God, in the ages to come, far, far away in the fu- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



145 



lure, going to " show the exceeding riches of his grace 
in his kindness," &c ? And if he does so, what will 
it avail, or accomplish for the rest of mankind, who 
have passed away unprepared for heaven, into an 
eternal hell ? And when one turns, to the 15th chap- 
ter of Acts, and reads the words of James, spoken 
at the council of the Apostles, when any error would 
have been immediately corrected, he is worse than 
confounded; as the sentiments of James are shown, 
by tacit assent, to have been those of all present. 
See verse 6 and 13-18. Well, I have been warning 
you to let your creed fly loose in the wind, so that 
you might come to the truth ; so please let it fly till 
we are through. Giving it an airing may result in 
great good to the owner. That is the very thing 
Luther did with his Roman creed ; and we know the 
blessed result to himself and others. Rely upon it, 
a person who is creed-bound, is " ever learning, and 
never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." 
That is, when such a person is trying to learn ; for 
many of that class don't even try. 

It is both admitted and taught by the preachers 
who honor themselves by the title of Evangelical, 
Orthodox, &c, and by many other religious teachers, 
as the reader well knows, that from the commence- 
ment of the gospel dispensation until the present 
time, a very small proportion of the human family 
have been saved ; and consequently, that much the 
larger portion of the human family have sunk doAvn 
into an eternal hell for more than eighteen hundred 
years. And yet these very teachers, (and I have 



146 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



listened to them for fifty years), call the gospel good 
news, and glad tidings. If it is good news to the af- 
fectionate father of three lovely children, that the 
government of his country has bestowed upon one 
of his children for life, the most honorable and lu- 
crative position within its gift, and which must in 
the nature of things, afford him every thing which 
renders life desirable ; and has banished the other 
two into cruel penal servitude for life, from which 
there is not the least hope of deliverance, then such 
a gospel is good news and glad tidings. 

I will now show from Paul's own words, that if 
we are living under such a gospel, we are a wretched 
people compared with those living prior to the giv- 
ing of the law through Moses. Says Paul, — 
"Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not im- 
pute sin," Rom. 4:8. " For until the law sin was 
in the world ; but sin is not imputed where there is 
no law," 5 : 13. " For where no law is, there is no 
transgression," Rom. 4 : 15. As we are taught that 
there are but few, very few, saved of them living 
under the present dispensation, is not my proposi- 
tion fully established ? Can a man be lost when sin 
is not imputed to him ? In fact, between Adam and 
Moses, which, in biblicaf language, is equivalent to be- 
tween Adam and the giving of the law, people had 
no commandments of God to transgress, as they 
could not sin after the similitude of Adam's 
transgression ; and that continued for about 2,500 
years. The class of preachers that I have just men- 
tioned, tell us Christ died for all men, from Adam 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



147 



down ; and this is true, and as God did not impute the 
sins of people living before the law was given, will any 
one tell me what can prevent every soul of them 
from being saved ? And I don't even except Cain, 
the murderer. God inflicted a temporal punishment 
upon him for his wrong. And he also inflicted a 
temporal punishment upon the inhabitants of Sodom 
and Gomorrah. God also inflicted a terrible tem- 
poral punishment upon the Jews living in the time 
of Christ, when Jerusalem was finally destroyed by 
the Romans. But it don 't follow that the Jews 
there slain, who numbered over one million souls, 
went down to an eternal hell. Indeed, it cannot be, 
if Paul's teachings in Romans 11, in regard to the 
salvation of Israel, are correct. 

And in this connection, it is well to call attention 
to the saying of our Lord to his disciples, respecting 
the Jews of his day, who were under the law, espe- 
cially as they were a wicked people, and termed by 
Mm, a wicked and perverse generation, or race. Je- 
sus says, — "If I had not come and spoken unto 
them, they had not had sin ; but now they have no 
excuse for their sins." * * * "If I had not done 
among them the works which none other did, they 
had not had sin," John 15 : 22-24. The term " had 
not had sin," is evidently equivalent to the one, 
their sins would not have been imputed ; and that, 
although they were under the law. But Christ's 
coming and his rejection by them were very intimate- 
ly connected; and we should not forget the cause of 
that rejection as set forth in Rom. 11. 



148 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



We have already found that during the first 2,500 
years of man's existence, his sins were not imputed 
unto him ; and we are now to dispose of the ques- 
tion, whether man's situation at present, in regard to 
both time and eternity, is better or worse, ; and that 
will require freedom of thought and close application 
to the subject; 

I have already shown that God has had an elect 
people from the time lie led the Israelites out of 
Egypt by the hand of Moses — yes, from Abraham's 
day — that Israel was elected for his especial use un- 
der the legal dispensation, to whom were given the 
covenant and the law until Christ came. And to 
this one nation only was the law given, which Paul 
tells us served as a schoolmaster to bring men to 
Christ. And with the first coming of Christ came 
another election, commencing with the twelve apos- 
tles, and must go on till the church, the body of 
Christ is complete, Eph. 1 : 22, 23. And when 
Christ's body, the elect church, composed of the 
saints of every generation is complete, then follows, 
in God's due time, the manifestions of the sons of 
God, resplendent with the glory that Christ has 
given them, that the world may believe. It is the 
special duty of the church to labor now for her own 
edification, which signifies building up in the most 
holy faith ; and also, for the conversion of sinners ; 
but there is a far more glorious work awaiting her 
in the great future, when the church shall be glorified 
with her Redeemer. This part of our subject I will 
treat of in its proper place. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



149 



But there is one thing T will here say lest it be 
forgotten ; and that is, let us remember that we are 
exhorted to make our calling. and election sure, 2 
Peter 1 : 10; and in the same chapter the apostle 
tells us how to accomplish it : and he also tells us 
the consequences to ourselves, if we fail to add to 
our faith the various graces he mentions, verses 5-9. 

A religious teacher who loves God, and his fellow- 
men, and earnestly desires their eternal welfare, 
sometimes refrains from proclaiming some important 
truth, or truths which God has shown him, from fear- 
that the result will be injurious to others. But we 
should remember that the result is the Lord's, and 
not ours ; and that he commands us to let our light 
shine ; and in gospel language, light is truth. Yet 
those who know the voice of the Spirit, should wait 
for that voice, which is the sweetest of all voices ; 
and when that voice commands, never disobey for 
one moment ; for that voice is the voice of God. 

I have already called your attention to the fact 
that it was to the Israelites the law was given, and 
of course, they were under the law, whether other 
nations were, or were not. And I have further called 
your attention to the teachings of Paul, that where 
is no law there is no transgression, (no law to be vio- 
lated) ; and consequently, that sin is not imputed 
where there is no law. And that, in plain words, 
means, that where there is no law, we have no sins to 
answer for. And thus it is with a reasonable earthly 
parent. He does not condemn a younger child for 
doing some act for which he would an older one, for the 



150 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



simple reason that the older one has been instructed 
that it is contrary to the father's Avill, while the younger 
one has not. Sometimes legislative bodies composed 
of learned, and what are termed wise men, enact laws 
which produce very different results from those an- 
ticipated by the law-makers. But it is not so with 
the Infinite Mind, as he knew from the beginning, 
the full and final results upon every creature, of the 
law he gave, and that, in its most minute operations. 
And I think yon will admit, that God never gave a 
law without having some purpose in view. But if 
you do not admit it, yet Paul tells us that God did 
have a purpose to accomplish in giving the law. Yes, 
and a number of them ; but each purpose in its due 
time and order. As we have seen, God chose Abra- 
ham, that from him he might raise himself up a peo- 
ple, — that he might give to that people a law ; and 
now we will let Paul tell for what purpose the law 
was given. "Moreover the law entered that the of- 
fence might abound." — Rom. 5 : 20. That is, the 
law was given that sin might be imputed to men ; 
for before the giving of the law, no man could trans- 
gress or violate it, but when it was given to the 
Israelites as a nation, then it became obligatory upon 
them, and when an Israelite violated its requirements, 
then the offence or sin was imputed to him, subject- 
ing him to temporal, but not to eternal punishment. 
That the term offence, used by Paul signifies, or is 
equivalent to that of sin, is evident from the follow- 
ing, 6:1, " Shall we continue in sin, that grace may 
abound ? " But I will now give all of verse 20, chap. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



151 



ter 5. — " Moreover the law entered, that the offence 
might abound. But when sin abounded, grace did 
much more abound." But who arranged it that sin 
should abound, and that grace should so much more 
abound? Any believer, even though he be a disci- 
ple of John Calvin, will reply, God thus arranged 
it. And the grace of God signifies the favor of God, 
and that favor is the spontaneous fruit of God's infi- 
nite love manifested through Jesus Christ, and ex- 
tending to all men, as God is not willing that any 
should * perish, but that all should come to repen- 
tance. — 2 Peter 3 : 9. Paul tells us, that we have all 
sinned and come short of the glory of God. — Rom. 
3 : 25 ; 5 : 12. And he also says, " For as many as 
have sinned without law, shall also perish without 
law."— Rom. 2 : 12. But from Adam to Moses, 2,500 
years, men's sins were not imputed to them, as there 
was no law until Moses' time ; and shall they all 
eternally perish? For they all sinned, and most cer- 
tainly sinned without law. 

The Gentiles from Moses down to Paul's time 
never had either the law or the gospel. Shall they 
all eternally perish? I ask these questions to call 
your attention to the word perish, that you may con- 
sider its real meaning, as we find the word frequent- 
ly used in the New Testament, and in various con- 
nections. The mass of Adventists would tell us 
that it means annihilation ; while the so-called Or- 
thodox would tell us that in the verse above quoted, 
and those of like character, it signifies eternal pun- 
ishment. In some connections, in the Bible, it evi- 



152 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



dently means to die a natural death; but in other 
cases the context shows, that it must have a differ- 
ent meaning. I readily admit that in some instances 
it signifies to suffer punishment. And again it sig- 
nifies to suffer loss or eternal death, as in 1 Cor. 15 : 
18, where Paul says, " Then they also who are fallen 
asleep in Christ are perished." For we cannot, for 
a moment, entertain the idea that the apostle intend- 
ed to say, that those holy men and women who not 
only believed in God but had repented of, and for- 
saken all sin, were to be punished, even if their faith 
in Christ and the resurrection had been in vain. 
Please notice, that in the last quotation you have the 
true definition of perish ; and hold on to it. 

Again the words death, second death, destroy and 
destruction and also perdition, seem to have a vari- 
ety of significations in the Scriptures very different 
from their present signification as we now use them. 
Again, all linguists know that it is exceedingly diffi- 
cult, and sometimes impossible to express in one lan- 
guage the ideas that are easily expressed in another, 
for the simple reason that suitable words are needed 
to do it which are not in use. And furthermore, we 
know within the period of one hundred years, some 
words in one language experience a great change in 
both their use and signification. Also, that in differ- 
ent localities in the same nation, and speaking the 
same tongue, that the same words have different 
significations. For instance, what is the beautiful 
Italian language but a change from the now dead 
Latin tongue ? And what is modern Greek also ? 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



153 



The J ews are left, but where is the Hebrew language 
except upon paper? Therefore when a word has a 
double meaning, shall we choose the one which will 
better express God's infinite love, or that which will 
better express his wrath or vengeance, so termed ? I 
think we should select the word in every case of 
doubt, which will most forcibly express the love of 
God, but never seek to conceal his justice. For in 
reserve, we might say in the rear of God's love, yet re- 
mains his mercy. And we are told that the love of 
God never fails, so great is that fountain, and that 
his mercy endureth forever. 

In 2 Peter 3 : 1-10, that apostle while speaking of 
those who scoff at the gospel uses the words perished 
and perdition in a manner that enables us to get 
quite a correct idea of their signification, saying, 
" For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the 
word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth 
standing out of the water, and in the water ; where- 
by the world that then was, being overflowed with 
water, perished. But the heavens and the- earth 
which are now, by the same word, are kept in store 
reserved unto fire, (or stored with fire being re- 
served), against the day of judgment and perdition 
of ungodly men " * * * It seems to me that 
the question to be settled in considering these words 
is, does the word world, as used by Peter, signify the 
same as the earth ? I think they are used synony- 
mously by him. Therefore, when he says the world 
perished, I infer that he primarily referred to the 
earth, if not exclusively ; or to both the earth and 



154 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the people thereon. Now in what sense did the earth 
perish ? In this — it was entirety submerged ; and 
doubtless, it was much changed by the effect of the 
deluge. But will any one say that the earth was lit- 
erally destroyed, or that it literally perished. And 
if you construe the term world to signify the inhab- 
itants of the earth, then they only died. Have you 
not always been taught, and have you not always 
believed, that instead of the earth, or the world's 
being literally destroyed, that it was cleansed and 
purified by the removal of its sinful inhabitants? 
I am not acquainted with a believer in God's word 
who thinks otherwise. Then it follows that Peter 
intended to say that the earth was purified ; and that 
as it was once purified by water, so it will be by fire. 
And if perish signifies to purify when applied to the 
earth, why does not perdition signify purification 
when applied to men in the phrase, " Perdition of 
ungodly men," as used by Peter in verses 7, 8? But as 
Peter is drawing a comparison between the ungodly 
of the present time and those of Noah's day, we 
should consider the word "perdition" as used by 
him as signifying the same as if used to describe the 
ungodly of Noah's day. In the New Version the 
milder word destruction is used. But King James' 
translators evidently felt that they were in duty 
bound to make every thing as dreadful, in every 
case, for the ungodly, as the original tongue would 
possibly bear. And when they had made the English 
language express all that was possible, then we may 
well believe, that they deeply and sadly felt, that all 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



155 



the tongues of men combined were far too weak to 
express the eternal pains, sufferings and horrors 
which an infinite Creator, (as they thought), had 
prepared for any and all of his own weak and finite 
creatures who pass the portals of death unpardoned. 

Those translators were creed-bound ; and a learned 
commentator very truly says of them, that they fre- 
quently acted more the part of expositors than trans- 
lators. And yet the learned commentator, familiar 
as he was with the Greek, failed to correct some of 
their most egregious errors, some of which have been 
corrected in the late Version — for instance, xpcva>, 
to judge, rendered damn; and xpcois, judgment, ren- 
dered damnation in the old Version. When both 
translators and commentators pursue such a course, can 
it beascribedto any other cause than that of sectarian 
prejudice and bias, and the cruel intolerance of those 
times, which caused the murky darkness and hate of 
hell to measurably hide the light and love of heaven ? 

And with such a translation the church has 
plodded along, for more than two hundred and fifty 
years, and during that time the ministry have taxed 
their intellectual powers to the utmost, to vividly 
portray the eternal horrors awaiting the so-called 
damned, and teaching from the pulpit that with the 
rolling years of eternity, those horrors would be 
multiplied, multiplied, multiplied in an increasing 
ratio ; and that the power of the soul to endure 
would be increased in like ratio. I do not say that 
all preachers have thus taught, but many have — and 
all prepared and thus arranged by a God of infinite 



15(3 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



love, for his creature who was not willingly made 
subject to sin, but by reason of Mm who subjected 
him, Rom. 8 : 20. 

I believe that it is appointed unto men once to die, and 
after this cometh judgment; yet I further believe, 
and I think it my duty to assert it, that such doctrine 
as the above in regard to the sentence of the impen- 
itent is quite abominable. For they teach that it is 
God, who knows all things, the present, past and fu- 
ture, who thus sentences a portion of his own crea- 
tures to an eternity of ever increasing punishment ; 
and it is nonsense to say that the sinner sentences 
himself, as they teach. And when I further read, 
Psa. 103 : 13, 14,—" That as a father pitieth his chil- 
dren, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him ; for he 
knoweth — he remember eth that we are dust," — how 
can I believe that he has placed himself and us in 
such a position, that he can never exercise that pity 
towards the sinner after a certain period of time? 
If God was not infinite in both knowledge and 
power, he, like us, might be found in such a position, 
but not otherwise — that is, in a position where he 
could not do as he would. 

Jesus himself suggests the idea to us that God may. 
after the death of the body forgive one's sins, in his use 
of the following language, — "Therefore, I say unto 
you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto 
men ; but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not 
be forgiven. And whoever shall speak a word 
against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him ; but 
whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



15T 



shall not be forgiven him, neither in this age, [not 
world], nor in that which is to come," Matt. 12 : 31, 
32. In this declaration of our Saviour, the reader 
may readily see, that he first declares, that all kinds 
of sin shall be forgiven, with but one exception, and 
that is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit ; and then 
declares that the latter sin shall not be forgiven ei- 
ther in this age, nor in the subsequent one. If the 
reader will turn to the last of Matthew, he Avill find 
the following words of our Saviour, — "And lo, I am 
with you alway, even unto the end of the world ;" 
but when properly translated, it reads " Lo, lam with 
you alway, even unto the consummation of the age." 
From this you perceive that the present age extends 
to the time when the church finishes the work allot- 
ted her to be accomplished before the Lord's return. 
And if you will turn to the explanation of the para- 
ble of the wheat and the tares, Matt. 13 : 36-43, you 
will find that Jesus tells us when this age ends ; for 
there he tells us that the harvest is the end, or con- 
summation of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 

Now allow me to ask, if sins committed now in 
this present age, (Gr. accov), cannot be forgiven in a 
subsequent age, why does the Lord speak of it ? 
And from this Avord, auov signifying age, is derived 
auovto^ which consequently signifies the length, or 
period of an age ; and this adjective aiomoc, is the 
word which is generally translated eternal or ever- 
lasting in the Testament, as in the last verse of 
Matt. 25. This Ave will consider at the proper place. 

But in connection with the quotation from Matt. 



158 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

12 : 31, 32, suffer me to call your attention to Matt. 
5 : 25, 26, where Jesus says, — " Agree with thine ad- 
versary quickly while thou art in the way with him ; 
lest haply the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and 
the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast 
into prison. Verily, I say unto thee, thou shalt, by 
no means, come out thence, till thou have paid the 
last farthing." And in verse 22, — "But I say unto 
you that every one who is angry with his brother 
shall be in danger of the judgment and whosoever 
shall say to his brother Eaca, shall be in danger of 
the council ; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall 
be in danger of the hell of fire," (Gr. Gehenna of 
fire). And in verse 29, — "And if thy right eye 
cause thee to stumble, pluck it out and cast it from 
thee ; for it is profitable for thee that one of thy 
members should perish, and not that thy whole body 
be cast into hell" (Gr. Gehenna). When anything 
is spoken of by the Lord as plainly as hell is in the 
two last quotations, I cannot doubt its existence. 
Therefore, I believe, that if there is not now, there 
will be, after the judgment of the impenitent, the 
hell mentioned by our Lord, whether it is a place, or 
condition, or both ; and that thus the sinner will be 
rewarded according to his works, as the Saviour and 
his apostles teach us. 

But what does the Lord intend to teach, when 
warning us of the danger of being cast into hell, he 
also, in the same connection, instructs us how to 
avoid being cast into prison, and tells us that when 
we are once there, we shall not come out thence till 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



159 



Ave have paid all that is due, to the least fraction. 
Do the prison and the hell mentioned, by him mean 
one and the same ? It so seems to me. Now con- 
sider this question, — Why does Jesus mention, or 
speak of a person ever coming out of the prison, if 
there is no such thing? 

Again, would God, who loves all his creatures, and 
will reward and also punish all according to their 
works, consign a person to an endless hell, or in oth- 
er words, to endless suffering, for calling his brother 
a fool ? Would it not be more in harmony with 
God's character to release such an offender from 
prison when he had expiated his offence by endur- 
ing the merited punishment ? And has our Heaven- 
ly Father, by his so-called " eternal laws and scheme 
of salvation," placed himself in such a position, that 
he must inflict eternal punishment upon all the im- 
penitent ? Would an affectionate earthly parent 
place himself in such a position respecting any of 
his children ? Reader, would you do so ? Then 
why should you believe that an omniscient God, who 
is love himself, has done so ? Again, God's love, 
like himself, is infinite and boundless ; while we, be- 
ing finite, can only love in part. 

And as I have remarked, the term prison is evi- 
dently used by our Lord, when he says " Thou shalt 
not come out thence, till thou hast paid the utter- 
most farthing," to denote Gehenna and Hades, in 
the same manner as it is used in other portions of 
the Scriptures, for the same purpose, to express the 
place of punishment in the spirit world, as in 1 



160 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Peter 3 : 9, where Peter says of the Sav- 
iour, that he went and preached to the spirits in 
prison. And in Isa. 42 : T, the prophet says, — 
"To bring out the prisoners from the prison." 
Also in Isa. 61 : 1, we find the term prison used in 
like manner when the prophet says of Christ, — 
"The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because 
the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings 
unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the bro- 
ken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and 
the opening of the prison to them that are bound." 
And both of these last quotations speak of Jesus 
and the spirit world ; and in that world were the 
prisons referred to, in which were the captive spir- 
its. Thus we see that Isaiah, hundreds of years be- 
fore Christ, had used the term prison in the same 
manner that the latter used it, viz., to designate the 
place in which spirits were confined. Therefore, 
shall we not conclude that the prison referred to by 
the Saviour, is either Hades or Gehenna itself, or in- 
tended to represent it ? In fact, can we come to any 
other conclusion ? We are compelled to make some 
application of what the Lord says to us in regard to 
the danger of being cast into prison, and being there 
incarcerated until our indebtedness is discharged. 

We know that God is adverse to the sinner, that 
is, adverse to his sinful course, and that the sinner 
is adverse to God while in rebellion against him. 
Therefore, he makes God his adversary. Paul says 
to the sinner, and to the believer, whose will is only 
partially subject to the divine will : " We pray you 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



161 



in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." — 2 Cor. 
5 : 20. And again, Rom. 5 : 10, " For if, when we 
were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the 
death of his Son ; much more, being reconciled, we 
shall be saved by his life." And thus it follows that 
when the sinner's will is once reconciled to his Crea- 
tor, that God is no longer adverse to him, and there- 
fore, he is no longer in danger of the prison. 

You will notice that the adversary mentioned by 
the Saviour, cannot be Satan, because Jesus would 
never tell us to agree with. him. It therefore follows, 
that if Jesus represented hell by the term prison, 
then there may be a limit to the sinner's abode there. 
I have reflected often upon the foregoing teaching of 
our Lord ; and it is well worthy of our considera- 
tion in connection with the future condition of the 
human race. 

In this connection I will call attention to the lan- 
guage of Peter in 1 Peter 2 : 11, 12, addressed to the 
church in general scattered among the Gentile na- 
tions. " Beloved, I beseech you as sojourners and 
pilgrims to abstain from fleshly lusts which war 
against the soul, having your behavior seemly among 
the Gentiles ; that wherein they speak against you 
as evil doers, they may by your good works which 
they behold, glorify God in the day of visitation." 
If you will turn to Luke 19, and read from verse 41 
to 45, you may perceive the true meaning of visita- 
tion, in the phrase, " Because thou knowest not the 
time of thy visitation." Because visitation, as then 
used by the Lord, meant his own visit to them, the 



162 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Jews, at that very time, as you may readily perceive 
from verse 42, when he says to Jerusalem, " If thou 
haclst known in this day, even thou, the things which 
belong unto peace ! but now they are hid from thine 
eyes." That is, the fact that the Messiah, for whom 
Israel had so long waited, was with them, was hid - 
from their eyes. That was the first visitation of the 
Lord Jesus ; and Peter who was present and heard 
the language of our Saviour, uses the same term in 
speaking of some future occasion when the favor of 
God will be extended to the Gentiles of whom Peter 
was speaking. And it would seem that it must be 
when the living church shall be clothed with, and 
manifested in the glory, which Jesus speaks of hav- 
ing bestowed upon her, that the world may believe 
in him. — John 17 — and by Paul in Rom. 8 : 21. No, 
the great truth that Jesus of Nazareth was the Mes- 
siah, and that he was then visiting them, and extend- 
ing towards them both temporal and eternal salva- 
tion, was hid from their eyes, and the Messiah well 
knew that such was the fact, and loved his people, 
and the beautiful city of his Father, of which the 
Psalmist sang, — "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the 
whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, 
the city of the great King." — Psa. 48 : 2. And of 
which Jesus says, that it shall be trodden under foot 
by the Gentiles till the times of the Gentiles shall ' 
be fulfilled. And God also says, " That he will again 
establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth ; 
and that he will not rest till the righteousness there- 
of go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



163 



as a lamp that burnetii." But I have shown before, 
that Jerusalem is to be rebuilt. But please consider 
that her destruction had been foretold by both the 
prophets and the Lord J esus ; and from the fact that 
the Lord destroyed his chosen city, but will yet re- 
construct it in more than its former glory, you may 
gather some correct ideas of what is meant when the 
Lord says that he will destroy the sinner. There- 
fore, at this point we will endeavor to more clearly 
ascertain what is meant by the destruction of the 
sinner. And we will do this by comparing Scripture 
with Scripture ; and not endeavor to do so by com- 
paring Scripture with something foreign. 

First, allow me to remind you, that all the preach- 
ers tell us that we, being under the gospel dispensa- 
tion, are living under the dispensation of the grace 
of God, which signifies that we are now living under 
the especial favor of God extended unto us through 
Jesus Christ, his blessed Son. But while they di- 
rectly assert this, do the teachings of the majority 
show it ? I think not. And especially, do the doc- 
trines of the Calvinists fall far short of it. I shall 
now proceed to show that the assertion is true ; and 
certainly, the ministry should not condemn me for 
proving what they directly assert. 

I think no candid person will deny the proposition, 
that when the same terms are used in both the Old 
and the New Testament respecting man, and express- 
ing God's feelings towards him, that they should not 
be construed more unfavorably, but in case of doubt, 
yes, in every case, more favorably when expressed 



164 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



under the gospel dispensation than when expressed 
under the legal dispensation. For this is the dispen- 
sation of love, and that was the dispensation of the 
law, as we are now under grace. 

We find the word destroy first used in Gen. 6 : 7, 
when God says, " I will destroy man whom I have 
created, from the face of the earth." And we know 
that God did not annihilate man, but swept him 
away by the flood. Then the word destroy is used 
in Gen. 18, when Abraham pleads with God for the 
inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, saying, " Wilt 
thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? " 
Here it was only natural death. Then we hear Job 
saying, " For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and 
that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth; 
and though after my skin worms destroy this body, 
yet in my flesh shall I see God." — Job. 19 : 25, 26. 
Upon this glorious declaration of God's servant, I 
wish to remark, that we believe in the resurrection 
of the body, and is not man's dead body very effect- 
ually destroyed by the worms and the various ele- 
ments of nature ? But yet we are told by Paul that 
it is sown a natural body, but raised a spiritual body ; 
it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption ; 
it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory ; it is 
sown in weakness, it is raised in power." — 1 Cor. 15. 
But who will deny that the body has been destroyed, 
both the body of saint and sinner ? Yet, here is the 
destroyed body of the saint glorified according to 
the teachings of the apostles ; and we believe it. 
Then why should we apply the term destroy or de- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



165 



struction with greater force, or a more comprehen- 
sive effect or result, to the whole man, when we see 
what a glorious work God accomplishes for the body 
after its destruction ? And if we are now more 
under the favor of God than those living before 
Christ's time, why should we construe the words and 
phrases, used both then and now expressing God's 
feelings and intentions towards man, as expressive of 
greater severity to us, than to them ? Such a con- 
struction is a positive, although indirect, contradic- 
tion, not only of the heavenly message brought by 
the angelic host at the birth of Jesus, Luke 2 : 10- 
14, but also of the gracious declarations of the love 
of the Father for his creatures which so often fell 
from his lips ; and also contradicts the lessons of 
love taught us by his numerous acts to relieve the 
temporal sufferings of men arising from bodily ail- 
ments, and the presence of evil spirits. In Jer. 15 : 
7, God says of Israel, " I will destroy my people 
since they return not from their ways." Please read 
from verse 1. Is Israel destroyed according to the 
common acceptation of the term ? Yet, God severe- 
ly punished Israel several times, as we well know, 
and that nation is now suffering punishment from his 
hands ; and to use the expression of Paul respecting 
the wicked, Israel is now being punished with never 
ceasing, or long continued destruction from the pres- 
ence of God, as compared with her former condition 
as his chosen people. " Cast them out of my sight," 
says God, " and let them go forth" — verse 1. Com- 
pare 2 Thess. 1 : 6-10. 



166 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

We find the word sifted used three times in the 
Scriptures. In Isa. 30 : 28, Amos 9 : 9, and Luke 
22 : 31. In the first, speaking of the intended pun- 
ishment of some Gentile nations, the prophet says of 
God, that " His breath as an overflowing stream, 
shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the na- 
tions with the sieve of vanity ; and there shall be a 
bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to 
err." Please read to the end of the chapter ; the 
last verse of which reads as follows : " For Tophet 
is ordained of old ; yea, for the king it is prepared ; 
he hath made it deep and large, the pile thereof is 
fire and much wood ; the breath of the Lord, like a 
stream of brimstone, doth kindle it." If you will 
read the four intervening verses you may readily see 
that this Tophet is only the summing up and graphic 
description of the punishment previously described. 
Thus we see that the word sift is used not only to 
express the punishment, but the cleansing of nations. 
And if any one doubts that such is the signification, 
let him read and consider Amos 9 : 9, 10 and 11, and 
what he himself knows of the fulfillment of the pro- 
phetic utterances therein contained. " For lo, I will 
command, and I will sift the house of Israel among 
all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall 
not the least grain fall upon the earth." Now we 
know that at the present time Israel is sifted, that is, 
scattered among all the nations of the earth ; that is, 
what we call nations in fact, not simply tribes. But 
God says they shall be sifted as corn ; and is not that 
sifted to cleanse it? And does not sacred history 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



167 



show that God cleansed Israel by chastisement quite 
a number of times, by suffering her to be conquered, 
subjugated, and carried into captivity, when she be- 
came sinful ; and that, by the very same nations 
which she could scatter like chaff, when faithful to 
her God and her everlasting Friend ? But in the 
eleventh verse God tells us, as he does in other 
places, that he will gather Israel together again, and 
buildup the nation ; and especially, do you find this 
confirmed by the tacit assent of the whole council of 
apostles and elders, as recorded in Acts 15 : 15-17. 
Israel is very, very far from being eternally lost. In 
fact, God himself says that not one grain shall fall to 
the earth, while the sifting process is going on. And 
falling to the earth, or going back to the earth with 
material things is equivalent to perishing; for in- 
stance, a tree, or the limb of a tree falling to the 
ground. 

I think we are now ready for the third and last 
verse where the word sift is found ; and that is in 
Luke 22 : 31, where Jesus says to Peter, (the first 
disciple called or elected by our Lord, and treated by 
our Saviour as the most prominent of the twelve, 
bestowing upon him the distinction of always being 
one of the three selected to be with himself on im- 
portant occasions, and selecting him to first preach 
the gospel to both Jew and Gentile); "Simon, Simon, 
behold, Satan asked to have you, (or obtained you 
by asking) that he might sift you as wheat; but I 
made supplication for thee, that thy faith fail not : 
and do thou, when once thou hast turned again, es- 



168 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tablish thy brethren." Peter at once replied, "Lord, 
with thee I am ready to go both to prison and to 
death." And doubtless, Peter was both sincere and 
determined in this declaration ; yet we know, that 
soon after he denied his beloved Master. During 
many years, I thought that the idea, conveyed by 
the Lord's words to Peter, was, that Satan wanted to 
have him to harrass and torment him eternally, and 
if Jesus had not prayed especially for him, 'Satan 
would have succeeded in overthrowing him, and 
finally dragged him down to an eternal hell. But I 
think quite differently now. The marginal reading 
of the Revised Edition is, "obtained you by asking," 
instead of asked to have you, so it is now a question 
to be considered whether Satan did, or did not have 
his request granted, and so sifted Peter, that in his 
weakness and fear he did, hard pressed as he was, 
deny his Lord, whom he so dearly loved as to follow 
him into the judgment hall, and the very midst of 
their common enemies. I leave the question, wheth- 
er the text, or the marginal reading is correct — and 
the further one, whether Satan sifted Peter, or did 
not, for the decision of the reader. Please notice 
that Jesus did not pray that Satan's request should 
be denied, but that Peter's faith should not fail ; 
and Jesus evidently meant during the severe trial or 
sifting that Satan was about to give him. I for- 
merly read this, as I did other Scripture, with a vis- 
ion obscured by false teachings, which placed the love 
of God in the background, and eternal hell with its 
dark shadows too much in front. In this connection, I 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



169 



think it well to call attention to 1 Tim. 1 : 20, where 
Paul says that he delivered Hymeneus and Alexander 
to Satan, that they might be taught not to blaspheme. 
And in 1 Cor. 5, where he instructs the church at 
Corinth, to deliever a certain person, a believer, over 
to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, "that the 
spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. 
Again, under the old dispensation, we see Job deliv- 
ered into the hands of Satan, by special agreement, 
and Satan was suffered to do his utmost, in torment- 
ing him, only that he was to spare his life. And 
Satan did his utmost, sweeping away his property, 
slaying his children, and tormenting his body ; and 
who has the timerity to assert that this was not to 
try Job, and for his good ? And was not Job sifted ? 

And now allow me to ask if Paul could deliver 
persons over to Satan to teach and purify them, that 
they might finally be saved, why cannot God do the 
same ? And why can he not do it at the time the 
body dies, or at any time after, as well as during 
one's natural life? But now let us turn to the 
eighteenth chapter of Matthew, where I think Jesus 
teaches us that God not only can, but will do so. 
And as we examine this teaching of our Lord, let us 
remember that in his sermon on the mount he tells 
us that if we forgive men their trespasses against us, 
that God will forgive our trespasses ; and that if 
we do not so forgive, that he will not forgive us," 
Matt. 6 : 14, 15. And in the eighteenth chapter, in 
a parable, he teaches us, what will be the further 
consequences if we don't forgive — and that in a di- 



170 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



rect response to the following question, " Then came 
Peter, and said to him, how oft shall my brother sin 
against me and I forgive him ? until seven times ? 
Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee until seven 
times; but until seventy times seven. Therefore is 
the kingdom of heaven like to a certain king who 
would make a reckoning with his servants." And 
the result was that one of the king's servants who 
owed him a very large sum, and whose debt was 
cancelled, or forgiven him, by the king, seized one 
of his fellow-servants, who was owing him a trifling 
amount, and was unable to pay, and cast him into 
prison, to remain until he paid the debt ; and that 
fact coming to the ear of the king, he had the cruel 
servant whose debt he had cancelled, brought before 
him, and delivered him to the tormentors "till he 
should pay the full amount of his indebtedness." 
And then the Saviour adds, " So shall my heavenly 
Father do unto you, if ye forgive not every one his 
brother from your hearts." Please read the state- 
ment of Jesus in full. 

We have good reason to believe that the declara- 
tion was made not only to Peter, but to the entire 
twelve, and perhaps, to other disciples ; and I do not 
propose to apply it to any but believers. First, let 
the reader notice how well this harmonizes with the 
Lord's declaration in Matt. 5 : 26, — " Verily I say 
unto thee, thou shalt, by no means, come out thence, 
till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing." And in 
the case of the king and the unmerciful servant, Je- 
sus says, — " And his lord was wroth, and delivered 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



171 



him to the tormentors till he should pay all that was 
due." 

We speak of criminals paying the penalty due for 
their crimes, by their sufferings in the penitentiary, 
or in banishment, or in the stocks, or the chain gang ; 
and so it is in the cases above cited. Please notice 
that in both cases the offence is a failure to forgive. 
The king had at first ordered the debtor, his wife, 
his children and his property to be sold to discharge 
his debt ; but yielding to the entreaty of the debtor, 
he revoked the decree, and forgave him the entire 
debt, vast as it was. At first the king acted ac- 
cording to the law, and secondly, according 
to grace. But while enjoying the king's grace 
himself, the debtor, instead of extending a like 
favor, which is grace, to his own debtor, enforced the 
law in all its rigor against him, and thus threw him- 
self back under the law, where it was an eye for an 
eye, and a tooth for a tooth, proving by his own un- 
forgiving and selfish spirit, that he was a fit subject 
for the law, and not for grace ; and thus he was con- 
demned to either pay the debt in money, or by suf- 
fering. We know that criminals are sometimes sen- 
tenced either to pay a fine of so many dollars, or be 
imprisoned a certain number of days, each day of 
imprisonment estimated at so much ; and the con- 
victed person may choose one, or the other; and 
thus he atones for his offence against the law. And 
I cannot but believe that such is the case under the 
gospel dispensation. If it is not so, how are we in 
any better situation than under the legal dispensa- 



172 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tion. Please remember that I am not now discussing 
the situation of any except believers in the Lord Je- 
sus Christ as the Son of God, and the Saviour of the 
world. And the question is narrowed right down to 
this, "Is a believer in God and the Lord Jesus Christ, 
who has been most greviously wronged by some per- 
son, condemned to never ceasing and eternal punish- 
ment, if he departs this life suddenly, or otherwise, 
before he has, from his heart, forgiven the offender ?" 
Notice that a formal forgiveness will not answer. It 
is a heartfelt forgiveness that is required. A person 
dying in that state of being unable to forgive one 
very grievous wrong directly to himself or to some 
one very dearly loved by him, may lead an exempla- 
ry life as a Christian, and may be able to forgive 
numerous other severe wrongs which he has suffered 
at the hands of his fellow-men, but does not possess 
a sufficient portion of God's nature, love, to enable 
him to forgive this far more grievous one. And now, 
for this one offence, is he really and truly sent down 
to an eternal hell to suffer eternal torments in com- 
pany with Beelzebub, the minor fiends, murderers, 
whore-mongers, procurers, seducers of other men's 
wives, robbers of the widow and the orphan, persecu- 
tors of the church of Christ, and every other vile 
character, who never sought to please God while on 
earth, but simply sought to gratify his own lusts ? 
In the case taken as an illustration by the Saviour, 
in the course of time, upon a report from his keep- 
ers, that the unforgiving debtor, by his every-day 
life, and conversation, by his sympathy with his fel- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



173 



low prisoners, by his efforts to relieve their suffer- 
ings, and by his voluntary release of his own debtors, 
gave satisfactory evidence of a change of sentiments, 
the king might either commute or revoke his sentence. 
But by the prevalent gospel theory of the present 
day, no such power is allowed to the omniscient and 
omnipotent maker and owner of earthly kings, to be 
exercised in favor of his own erring creatures, who 
"were not willingly subjected to vanity," as Paul 
tells us. But the advocates of such theory tell us, 
that with the death of the body, the infinite power 
of the Almighty utterly ceases to be able to do, or 
to effect anything whatever for the relief of those 
who are condemned for even the slightest offence. Or 
in other words, they tell us, that one sin unpardoned 
at the death of the body eternally damns a person, 
and places him utterly beyond the reach of salvation, 
and the power of God to afford him any relief, be- 
cause such is God's plan or scheme of salvation. 

Now I assert that there is nothing in the New 
Testament that teaches such doctrine, but that there 
is very much there, which teaches the contrary. 
And as the party holding the affirmative, must first 
endeavor to establish his position, I might remain si- 
lent. But I am quite familiar with their entire, ar- 
gument; therefore, I am ready to reply. I know 
that they skillfully, and some of them unwittingly, 
beg the whole question ; and to support it, beg an- 
other one — and the second is this, — " That the par- 
don of one's sins secures him at the death of the 
body, an immediate entrance into heaven where 



174 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

Christ is in the presence of the Father and myriads 
of holy angels." Yes, they beg the third, viz., " That 
if one's sins are not pardoned before the death of 
the body, that he is then consigned to hell;" and to 
this they add, "Where hope can never reach him." 
And to support the second position, they quote the 
words of the Saviour to the penitent thief on the 
cross, "This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." 
But if they will turn to John 20 : 17, they may eas- 
ily discover that Jesus declared after his resurrec- 
tion, that he himself had not then ascended to the 
Father. And when they cite the case of the rich 
man and Lazarus to prove that the wicked go to hell 
when they die, and then turn to the Greek Testament 
to prove it, they only find the rich man in Hades, in- 
stead of Gehenna. If one cites the saying of Paul, 
that it was better for him to depart and be with 
Christ ; I frankly answer, that I don't for a moment 
deny that a Christian of his spiritual attainments, 
may enter heaven at the death of the body, as he had 
something more than the pardon of his sins. But if 
the reader yet doubts, let him turn to Acts 2 : 34, 
where we hear Peter on the day of Pentecost say- 
ing, — "For David ascended not into the heavens." 
Hades is the abode of departed spirits, and is quite 
different from Gehenna; yet it seems that the rich 
man was experiencing much suffering even there ; 
while the beggar was in Abraham's bosom. There- 
fore, I think we may consider Paradise and Abra- 
ham's bosom as synonymous terms, both signifying 
that portion of the spirit world where the righteous 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



175 



dwell until the final day of rewards. For when we 
are told that David ascended not into the heavens, 
why should we think that Abraham or any other 
person did ? And please notice that Peter said this 
of David after the resurrection and ascension of 
Jesus who was the firstfruit of them that slept; and 
therefore, no one could precede him in the resurrec- 
tion. But there are further sayings of Paul upon 
this point, to which I shall have occasion to refer 
hereafter. 

Hades is the abode of the dead ; and from what is 
said of the rich man and Lazarus, and especially of 
the rich man's sufferings there, and the language of 
Abraham, we may infer that punishment is there in- 
flicted upon the wicked. Bat instead of its being 
eternal punishment, we find much in the Scriptures 
to teach us that it is temporal; and I think we have 
good reason to believe, that this punishment is simi- 
lar to that the unmerciful servant was condemned to 
suffer, and which we will have to endure, if we do 
not truly forgive others their trespasses against us. 
The rich man is not told by Abraham, that he is al- 
ways to remain either in Hades, or in torment. 

In truth, Hades seems to serve as a temporary 
place of abode, or confinement for those who are not 
worthy of a part of the first resurrection to which 
Paul says he was striving to attain ; and it well be- 
comes all of us who profess Christ, to strive with 
Paul, to have that part. For there is a resurrection 
out from among the dead, (ex vexpwv), and also a gen- 
eral resurrection of the dead — and we find them 



176 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



both described in Rev. 20. On earth we have jails 
as places of temporary confinement for the accused, 
as well as for real criminals, guilty of minor offences ; 
and the accused are sometimes acquitted, and some- 
times sentenced to the penitentiary. Now under 
God's government, Hades seems to answer to the 
county jail under man's government. And it evi- 
dently appears from the Scriptures, that the happy 
time is coming when our Heavenly Father will have 
no further use for Hades ; and that, having served 
its purpose, it will be destroyed. — See Rev. 20 : 14. 
I think every Christian believes that at some time in 
the future death, will cease, as the Scripture says, 
"There shall be no more death," Rev. 21 : 4. And 
in Heb. 2 : 14, 15, we read of Christ, — "Since then 
the children are sharers in flesh and blood, he also 
in like manner partook of the same, that through 
death he may bring to naught, (or destroy), him 
that hath the power of death, that is, the devil." 

Now from the Scriptures, I will show without 
comment, that the devil, Hades and death, all go the 
same way, are disposed of by the same means, and 
share the same fate, and you may judge if it is not 
with the same final result to all three, unless the 
reader makes a distinction between the lake of fire 
and the lake of fire and brimstone. And if he does 
so, then Hades shares the same fate as death, and we 
must naturally believe with the same final result. 
And from the following Scripture, the reader may 
also see, that Hades will have performed the office 
for which it was intended, — "And the devil that de- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



17T 



ceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brim- 
stone, where also the beast and false prophet are ; 
and they shall be tormented day and night ages upon 
ages," Eev. 20 : 10. "And the sea gave up the dead 
which were in it; and death and Hades gave up the 
dead which were in them; and they were judged 
every man according to his works. And death and 
Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the 
second death, the lake of fire." 

If any one feels disposed to make the distinction 
above mentioned, he will feel obliged to abandon it 
when he reads the following, — " But the fearful, and 
unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and 
fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, 
shall have their part in the lake that burnetii with 
fire and brimstone, which is the second death," Rev. 
21 : 8. And of the lake mentioned in 20 : 14, it is 
said, "This is the second death." See also Matt. 
25 : 41 ; where Jesus says to a certain class of offen- 
ders, " Depart from me, ye cursed, (or under a curse) 
into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and Ms 
angels." So that one is forced to the conclusion 
that both lakes are one and the same. But let the 
reader note two tilings ; first, that what is related in 
Rev. 20 and 21, to which I have referred, occurs 
after the millennium ; second, that while it is said of 
the beast, false prophet and the devil, that they shall 
be tormented ages upon ages, the same is not said of 
mankind. But we are plainly told in Rev. 20 : 21, 
that " Whosoever was not found written in the book 
of life was cast into the lake of fire " ; and this is 



178 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



evidently the last and final judgment, which imme- 
diately precedes the restitution of all things. 

The second coming of our Lord is a portion of the 
gospel which is neglected by a large mass of religious 
teachers ; and some actually deny it. But our Ad- 
vent brethren err very greatly, when they teach that 
only those will be finally saved who are described in 
Rev. 20, as having a part in the first ressurrection ; 
and that all the rest of the human family will be an- 
nihilated, or consigned to eternal misery. That 
summary manner of disposing of the human family 
and its eternal interests, makes preaching a short 
business, and quite easy to learn. But man objects 
to having himself so summarily disposed of by his 
fellow man, with all those he loves and holds dear. 

And in great brotherly kindness, I must directly 
say to the ministry in general, thai; you all do the 
same thing, with but few exceptions ; and that you 
will continue to do so, until you cease adhering to 
your various creeds, and endeavoring, whether wit- 
tingly or unwittingly, to make the teachings of Jesus 
and his apostles conform to them. While you do 
this, you repel the light of the Holy Spirit, and the 
spiritual teachings of Jesus. Many good Christians, 
as the Jews of Paul's day, have had a zeal for God, 
but not according to knowledge ; and may not this 
be your situation in part ? It must be evident to all 
of you, that some of your creeds are very erroneous. 
Now reader, suffer me to say, that your creed is quite 
as liable to abound in errors, as that of your neigh- 
bors. And perhaps both of your creeds are wrong 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 179 



upon the very same question. And moreover, you 
may have a head creed that is as bad as either of 
them. For, as I have told you already, one error 
produces another ; and that is just as natural in 
spiritual things, as it is for one grain of corn to pro- 
duce another, or rather, many others. Brethren, you 
have a summary and wholesale method of tumbling 
your fellow-men into an eternal hell, that seems to 
them quite unreasonable. They read in the Scrip- 
tures of the self-denying and self-sacrificing spirit 
which animated the first preachers of the gospel, so 
like that which J esus ever manifested while on earth, 
and also the same love and power and glory resting 
upon them ; and then considering you, they say, 
" Why should I believe what these religious teachers 
tell me, when they don't agree among themselves, 
neither do they manifest the love for their fellowmen 
which the Saviour and his apostles did ? " 

Again, besides your creeds, you have your numer- 
ous, as you say, theological schools, but in fact, sec- 
tarian schools, purposely to teach your sectarian gos- 
pel ; and there you require the pupils to learn the 
gospel as modified, or conformed to, or transformed 
by your creed. The pupils are generally sons, whose 
parents are members of your own denomination, and 
who have been taught to highly esteem you as their 
spiritual instructors. And the professors are from 
your own number ; therefore, you commence your 
course of the religious training of those pupils with 
every advantage secured to yourselves. But that is 
not all. Those young men, generally, are not half as 



180 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



spiritual as they are carnal. In truth, nearly all of 
them have no spiritual life whatever, except the very, 
very little which accompanies the forgiveness of sins. 
Consequently, they cannot comprehend spiritual 
things, or things of the Spirit, spiritual truths. There- 
fore, it is easy to be seen that you simply educate 
the natural man ; and that, with natural truths. 
" For the natural man receiveth not the things of the 
Spirit of God ; for they are foolishness unto him, and 
he cannot know them, because they are spiritually 
examined, or discerned." — See 1 Cor. 2 : 13-15 ; 
where Paul further says, that he interpreted spiritual 
things to spiritual men. If you were spiritual like 
Paul, you would not be guilty of the foolishness of 
what you are now trying to do. If he was here, he 
would tell you that you were carnal, as he did some 
Christians of his day ; and I think you are sufficient-* 
ly familiar with his teachings to remember their prac- 
tices, which were so very similar to your own. Yet 
brethren, you are doing much good ; but God wants 
you to come into the liberty of the gospel of Christ, 
and thus do much more. So let us love one another 
with a pure heart fervently, and without the fear of 
man before us, speak in love, and thus do one another 
good. 

Brethren, I think you must be conscious of the 
fact, that there are many portions of the New Testa- 
ment, exclusive of Revelation, and also of the Old, 
for which you have no use practically in your preach- 
ing, because you cannot apply or explain them to 
your satisfaction. Again, there are many portions 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



181 



which you use for one and the same purpose, over 
and over again. And that is neither satisfactory to 
yourselves, nor any one else. You make some use 
of fulfilled portions of prophecy, but you make very 
little use of that portion which is not fulfilled. You 
use that portion Avhich, as you think, harmonizes 
with your creed, and the balance you either have no 
use for, or you are unable to use it. 

Again, I say to all believers, please suspend your 
creeds awhile, that is, turn your mind entirely away 
from them, while we continue this examination. 

I have already spoken of the summary manner the 
ministry have of sending people to hell. And I will 
now speak of the summary manner they have of 
sending them to heaven ; of course, I mean theoret- 
ically, as they don't profess to have the power to 
either remit sins, or to retain them, as do the Roman 
clergy. But in one discourse they will make the road 
into heaven so strait and difficult, and requiring that 
spotless purity and holiness, which can only be ac- 
quired by a self denial, somewhat like that of the 
Saviour and the apostles, that one almost loses hope 
of entering there. And then again they tell us, that 
if we only have faith to believe, that through the 
atonement and merits of Jesus, we may be received 
into heaven, and into the presence of God and our 
Saviour, and the angels, and thus be ever with the 
Lord. And they quote the case of the laborer men- 
tioned in the Scripture, to support their position, 
who, being called at the eleventh hour, received the 
same, a penny, as those who had toiled during the 



182 new testament theology. 

whole day ; although there are some religious teach- 
ers who do somewhat improve upon such teaching. 

But there is an insurmountable difficulty in all 
such teaching. First, Jesus says, " Blessed are the 
pure in heart, for they shall see God." — Matt. 5 : 8. 
And Paul says, that "Without holiness no man 
shall see the Lord." But a very large portion of the 
teachers referred to, tell us that we cannot become 
holy in this life, and that death effects nothing of the 
sort for us ; and that after death, God himself will 
do nothing more to complete our salvation. In fact, 
they tell us that He cannot do so. Therefore, it fol- 
lows that our salvation will be ever incomplete, if 
we believe both Paul and them, as very few of us 
feel that we are holy, although we may earnestly de- 
sire to be so. And there are other religious teachers 
who believe that they themselves are holy, and teach 
us that all men may become so in this life, if they 
will ; and if they do not, they will be banished from 
the presence of God and the Son, into hell, there tp 
endure ceaseless torments with Satan and his angels 
" forever and forever." And another class tell us, 
that if after we are properly instructed by them upon 
the subject, we then refuse to sacredly observe the 
Jewish Sabbath, we shall receive the mark of the 
Beast of Revelation, and be utterly annihilated. And 
then there are such a vast variety of methods of 
sending men to hell which I will not stop to men- 
tion ; and such a conflict of doctrines, and yet all of 
them so heavily charged with hell, and so lightly 
with heaven, that man becomes confused, and the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



183 



love of God is hidden from his view. Neither can 
lie see the love, justice or mercy of God ; and thus 
weighed down by his own sinful propensities, and be- 
set, and assailed by Satan abounding in malice and 
cunning, and willing to find an excuse or justifica- 
tion for himself, he says, " Well, there is such a va- 
riety of preaching and so conflicting, it may none of 
it be true." 

But reader, the gospel of Christ is true, let men 
teach what they will : and there is no other name 
given, either in heaven, or upon earth, but the name 
of Jesus, by which man can be saved. And thus 
Jesus truly says, " I am the way, and the truth, and 
the life, and no man cometli to the Father but by 
me." And let us not forget that Jesus also told the 
Jews that his " words should judge them at the last 
day." Therefore let us examine Christ's teachings 
more thoroughly, always keeping the fact in view, 
that God is love. But at the same time, we must re- 
member that God is just ; and in exercising his jus- 
tice, that he is a rewarder of all those who diligent- 
ly seek him ; that is, who seek to better know God, 
by doing his will. And we are also entitled to the 
privilege of remembering, that God is our Creator 
and our Father , and we should not allow any man, 
or class, or number of men, to rob us of our relation 
to God ; as no man can do it, unless we aid in the 
work by our own erroneous believing and acting, or 
living. For if we believe and act right, then we are 
for God, and He is especially for us ; and Ave may 
then say with the apostle, " If God is for us, who 



184 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



can be against us ? " That is, who can successfully 
withstand us, so as to prevent our individual salva- 
tion? 

With these remarks I shall now proceed to arrange 
certain portions of Scripture for convenient refer- 
ence and consideration ; and I would advise the 
reader to read the context, that he may better com- 
prehend their meaning. 

SELECTIONS. 

" And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of 
the Highest ; for thou shalt go before the face of the 
Lord to prepare his ways ; to give knowledge of sal- 
vation unto his people by the remission of their sins, 
through the tender mercy of our God." — Luke 1 : 
76-79. " And the angel said unto them, Fear not, 
for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, 
which shall be to all people. For unto you is born 
this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is 
Christ, the Lord. * * * And suddenly there 
was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host 
praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the high- 
est, and on earth peace, good will toward men." — 
2 : 10-14. 

" And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary, 
his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and 
rising again of many in Israel ; and for a sign which 
shall be spoken against." — 2 : 34. " Alight to lighten 
the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." — 
2: 32. 

" I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in 



NSW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



185 



heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than 
over ninety and nine just persons, who need no re- 
pentance." — Luke 15 : 7. Read from 1 to 10. And 
then read from verse 11 to 82. which ends as fol- 
lows : 

" And he said unto him. Son, thou art ever with 
me. and all I have is thine. It was meet, that we 
should make nierrv, and be odad : for this thv brother 
was dead, and is alive again : was lost and is found." 

"And it came to pass that the beggar died, and 
was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom ; 
the rich man also died and was buried. And in 
Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and 
seeth Abraham afar off. and Lazarus in his bosom." 
—Luke 16 : 22, 23. Please read from 19 to 31. 

" Verily I say unto you. Whosoever shall not re- 
ceive the kingdom of God as a little child, shall in 
no wise enter therein." — Luke 18 : 17. 

•■And he said unto them that stood by. Take from 
him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten 
pounds. (And they said unto him. Lord, he hath 
ten pounds.) For I say unto you. that unto every 
one that hath, shall be given ; and from him that 
ha tli not. even that he hath, shall be taken away 
from him. 

" But those my enemies, who would not that I 
should reign over them, bring liither, and slay them 
before me." — Luke 19 : 24-27. Please read from 
verse 11 to 27. 

" I am the true vine and my Father is the husband- 
man. Every branch that beareth not fruit hetaketh 



186 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



away ; and every branch that beareth fruit, he purg- 
eth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. If ye 
abide in me, and my words abide in yon, ye shall ask 
what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." — John 
15 : 1, 2, 7. 

"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I 
say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot 
see the kingdom of God. * * * * Jesus an- 
swered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man 
be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into 
the kingdom of God. That which is born of the 
flesh, is flesh ; and that which is born of the Spirit, 
is spirit. 

" For God so loved the world, that He gave 
his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in 
him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For 
God sent not his Son into the world to judge the 
world ; but that the world through him might be 
saved. 

" He that believeth on him is not judged ; but he 
that believeth not, is judged already, because he hath 
not believed in the name of the only begotten Son 
of God."— John 3 : 3, 5, 6, 16, 17, 18. 

" And this is the Father's will who sent me, that of 
all which he has given me, I should lose nothing, but 
should raise it up again at the last day. 

" And this is the will of him that sent me, that 
every one who seeth the Son and believeth on him, 
may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at 
the last day. 

" Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth 
on me hath everlasting life." — John 6 : 39, 40, 47. 



HEW TESTAMENT theology. 



187 



"Jesus answered and said unto them, My doctrine 
is not mine, but his that sent me."' — John 7 : 16. 
" Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the 
life : he that believeth in me, though he were dead, 
jet shall he live." — 11 : 25. 

And I. if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw 
all men unto me." — John 12 : 32. 

*• I am come a light into the world, that whosoever 
believeth on me, should not abide in darkness. And 
if anv man hear my words, and believe not, I judge 
him not : for I came not to judge the world, but to 
save the world." — 12 : 46, 47. 

" For the Son of man is come to save that which 
is lost."— Matt. 18 : 11. 

" Even so. it is not the will of your Father who is 
in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish." 
—Matt. 18 : 14. 

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, 
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he that 
doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many 
will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we 
not prophesied in thy name ? and in thy name cast 
out devils ? and in thy name done many wonderful 
works 9 And then will I profess unto them, I never 
knew you ; depart from me, ye that work iniquity." 
—Matt. 7 : 21, 22, 23. 

" And I say unto you, that many shall come from 
the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, 
Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven ; but the 
children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer 
darkness ; there shall be weeping and gnashing of 
teeth."— Matt. 8 : 11. 12. 



188 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

" For I would not, brethen, that you should be ig- 
norant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in 
your own conceits, that blindness in part has befallen 
Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. 
And so all Israel shall be saved ; as it is written, 
There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and 
shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob ; for this is 
my covenant with them, when I shall take away 
their sins. For God hath shut them all up in un- 
belief, that he might have mercy upon all. Now if 
the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the 
diminishing of them be the riches of the Gentiles ; 
how much more their fullness? " — Rom. 11 : 12, 25, 
26, 27, 32. 

"Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in 
which all that are in their tombs shall hear his voice, 
and shall come forth ; they that have done good, unto 
the resurrection of life, and they that have done 
evil unto the resurrection of judgment." — John 5 : 
28, 29. 

" Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth 
my word, and believeth him that sent me, hath eter- 
nal life, and cometh not into judgment, but has 
passed out of death into life." 

" I came to cast fire upon the earth ; and what 
will I, if it be already kindled ? "—Luke 12 : 49. 

" John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed 
baptize you with water, but there cometh he that is 
mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am in- 
sufficient to unloose ; he shall baptize you with the 
Holy Ghost and with fire." — Luke 3 : 16. 



3 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 189 

" But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and 
how am I straitened till it be accomplished." — Luke 
12 : 50. 

" And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of 
my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am 
baptized with ; but to sit on my right hand, and on 
my left, is not mine to give ; but it shall be given to 
them for whom it is prepared of my Father." — Matt. 
20 : 23. 

" For, I think, God has set forth us the apostles 
last of all, as men doomed to death ; for we are made 
a spectacle both to angels and to men. * * * 
Even unto this present hour we both hunger and 
thirst, and are naked, and are buffetted, and have no 
certain dwelling place. * * * * We are made 
as the refuse of the world, the offscouring of 
all things, even until now." — 1 Cor. 4 : 9-13. See 
Heb. 10 : 32-35. 

" For every one shall be salted with fire. Salt is 
good ; but if the salt has lost its saltness, wherewith 
will ye season it. Have salt in yourselves, and be at 
peace one with another." — Mark 9 : 49, 50. Please 
read from verse 41. 

" For the time is come for judgment to begin at 
the house of God ; and if it begin first at us, what 
shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of 
God? And if the righteous is scarcely saved, where 
shall the ungodly and sinner appear? " — 1 Peter 4 : 
17, 18. 

"Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery 
trial among you, which cometh upon you to prove 



190 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

you, as if some strange thing happened to you ; but 
inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, 
rejoice, that at the revelation of his glory, ye may 
also rejoice with exceeding joy." — 1 Peter 4 : 12, 13. 

" And the God of all grace, who called you unto 
his eternal glory in Christ, after that ye have suf- 
fered a little while, shall himself perfect, establish 
and settle you." — 1 Peter 5 : 10. 

" And if children, then heirs ; heirs of God, and 
joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with 
him, that we may be also glorified with him." — Pom. 
8:17. 

" But if we discerned ourselves we should not be 
judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we 
are chastened, that we may not be condemned with 
the world."— 1 Cor. 11 : 31, 32. 

" Inasmuch as he has appointed a day in which he 
will judge the world in righteousness by the man 
whom he hath ordained, whereof he has given assur- 
ance unto all men, in that he has raised him from 
the dead."— Acts 17 : 31. 

" For God appointed us not unto wrath, but unto 
the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus 
Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or 
sleep, we should live together with him." — 1 Thess. 
5 : 9, 10. 

We shall not comment upon all of the foregoing 
selections, but the reader, as he proceeds, will find 
them all needed for ready reference. And it is hoped 
that in each case he will read the context. 

It will readily be seen that in Luke 1 : 76-80, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



191 



Zacharias is speaking of John the Baptist ; and that 
in verse 67, Zacharias is said to have been filled with 
the Holy Spirit, and thus spake under its influence. 
And he tells us that John should be the prophet of 
the Most High, and should precede his Son to pre- 
pare the Jews, his people, for his coming by preach- 
ing to them the baptism of repentance for remission 
of sins. And thus, in due course of time, John came 
forth proclaiming the coming of the Lord, and 
declaring to his people, that although he did 
indeed baptize with water, that one who would 
follow him, would baptize with the Holy Spirit and 
with fire ; and that his fan would be in his hand, and 
he would thoroughly cleanse his floor, gather his 
wheat into his garner, and burn the chaff with un- 
quenchable fire. — Luke 3 : 3-17. Jesus has partially 
accomplished this, but the work is not yet com- 
pleted. 

But to understand what John meant, it is first 
necessary, as in other cases, to understand the mean- 
ing of the terms used by him. The baptism of water 
is evident to the senses of all. The baptism of the 
Holy Spirit is mentioned in the Scriptures, but can 
only be understood by experiencing it. The baptism 
of fire is the temptations,1(|ials and sufferings, such 
as our Saviour experienced, and which the saints of 
God were, and are yet required to pass through. 
And this is what our Saviour means when he says, 
" For every one shall be salted with fire." Also, 
when he said, "I have a baptism to be baptized 
with, and how am I straitened until it is accom- 



192 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



plished." And certainly, every believer should be 
familiar with the temptations and sufferings of the 
Lord Jesus. And this baptism of fire is what Peter 
and Paul refer to, — the former, when he says, " But 
insomuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, 
rejoice," &c, — the latter, when he says, " Joint heirs 
with Jesus Christ, if so be we suffer with him." 
Christians, we must either be salted, or baptized with 
fire, in this life, or in that to come. May God ena- 
ble us to choose wisely. It is the very worst folly to 
resist the will, or word of God, as the latter is simp- 
ly the expression of the former ; and therefore, God's 
will and word also, will prevail and be fulfilled. And 
Jesus and the apostles have pointed out the true 
way, and the only way, which leads into heaven ; and 
our Saviour has warned us, that he who tries to climb 
up by any other way, shall be treated as a thief and a 
robber. Reader, believer, are you willing to take 
the risk of being treated as such ? Preachers, will 
you teach others to pursue that course which will 
cause them to be treated as such ? When Jesus says 
that every one shall be salted with fire, how can any 
one escape it ? You cannot tell us how, for there is 
no escaping it. No person can truly tell another 
how to do a thing, whicjft is impossible to perform. 
Brethren, your method of getting to heaven, or more 
properly speaking, of ascending to heaven, is entire- 
ly too pleasant to be safe ; for when Jesus says that 
every one shall be salted Avith fire, it is the word of 
God, and cannot be overthrown. Indeed, Jesus says, 
" I came to cast fire upon the earth ; and what will 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 193 

I, if it be already kindled ? " And then he immedi- 
ately adds, " But I have a baptism to be baptized 
with, and how am I straitened till it be accom- 
plished." — Luke 12 : 49, 50. Does the reader see 
any connection between the declaration and question 
in the 49th verse, and what the Lord says of himself 
in the 50th? For the reader will perceive, that after 
speaking of his own baptism, and how he was dis- 
tressed by it, he immediately resumes his subject, 
and gives us a short explanation of the fire that he 
was about sending upon the earth ; saying, " Sup- 
pose ye that I am come to give peace upon the earth ? 
I tell you, Nay," &c. But there is a very close con- 
nection, and it is God's will, that the church should 
see this connection far more clearly than she does, 
for the true spiritual church is the chosen bride of 
his Son : and therefore, she must be made pure and 
without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. — Eph. 
5 : 27. Therefore, as gold is purified and refined in 
literal fire, so must the intended bride of Christ be 
purified by, and in the fire of temptations, trials, dis- 
appointments, afflictions, and various buffetings of 
Satan. 

The so-called gospel of this day has a very vague 
and uncertain sound. Many ministers preach Paul 
about as much as they do Christ ; but they don't 
either preach, or live as Paul did. They seem to 
take Christ as their foundation, but they are far from 
building as Paul did, — and consequently the fire will 
simply lap up their works in that day when all our 
works must be tested in God's crucible of fire. — 1 
Cor. 3 : 13. 



194 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

Many religions writers and teachers tell us, that 
the church never was so strong as she is at the pres- 
ent time 5 and in their folly, they don't except the 
primitive church instructed and led by men so filled 
with the Holy Spirit, that they, like our Redeemer, 
healed the sick, cast out devils, raised the dead, and 
preached the gospel in its purity and power, while 
the church itself abounded in the love of God, and 
the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Neither did believers 
of that day expect to be exempt from fiery trials, for 
they were taught to expect the baptism of fire, as 
well as the baptism of the Holy Spirit ; and conse- 
quently they believed, that " All who live godly in 
Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." — 1 Tim. 3 : 12. 
If they did not sing, as do the believers of this day, 

" Jesus has paid it all, 
All the debt I owe ; " 

yet they believed it ; and furthermore, they believed 
that they must follow their Redeemer through trials, 
temptations, persecutions, other sufferings, and if 
needs be, even unto death. Those words of the poet 
are true, when properly construed, but partially false, 
when Satan puts his construction upon them, which 
is very much the same, as that of many believers of 
the present time. The primitive Christians did not 
believe that Christ had redeemed them from suffering 
with him ; or if they did believe it temporarily, such 
a belief was soon swept away by the teachings of the 
apostles and their own experience. Think you that 
God has provided a different, and a pleasanter way 
for us intohis kingdom of glory and everlasting bliss? 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



195 



No, it is the same road that the Saviour trod, although 
the Christian may not always be conscious of it while 
on the way. But how can he be conscious of it, 
when he knows nothing of such a road ; that is, the 
real and true way of the cross ? 

Here is a verse of poetry which Satan can make 
very little use of : 

"Must I be carried to the skies 
On flowery beds of ease, 
Wbile others fought to win the prize, 
And sailed through bloody seas ? " 

And here is another which both the adversary and 
worldly, and pleasure-loving professors dislike, as do 
all carnally minded persons : 

" Sure I must fight, if I would reign, 

Increase my courage, Lord ; 
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain, 
Supported by thy word." 

Believers fail to see, that if they would reign with 
the Lord in glory, that they must follow the Captain 
of their salvation ; and that their experience must 
closely resemble that of their Redeemer. We can- 
not, by dying, save the world, as we are not appoint- 
ed to that position in God's great plan ; but we are 
appointed to aid, by both performing, and suffering 
our part, in that great work of salvation, and there 
is a far greater similarity between the experience of 
the Lord Jesus Christ, and that of his true disciples, 
than that which is now taught. And I shall now 
present this similarity of experience according to 
the light and understanding bestowed upon me by 
the Lord Jesus. 



196 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Man's relative standing to the great Author of our 
existence is much nearer than now taught by the 
ministry, as is shown by the following language of 
Jesus to the Jews, when they would have stoned him 
because he said he was the Son of God. " Is it not 
written in your law, I said, Ye are gods ? If he called 
them gods to whom the word of God came (and the 
Scripture cannot be broken), say ye to him," &c. — 
John 10 : 34, 35 ; and also by Paul's language to the 
Greeks, Acts 17 : 28, where he tells us, that we are 
the offspring of God. Now brethren, don't try to 
break the Scripture I have just given you, by any of 
your traditions, either new, or old, but let them re- 
main entire, and in full force with the people. And 
now let us consider man's relative standing with 
Christ, not as Christ is now, but as he was when here 
in the flesh. 

First, Jesus was begotten by the Father through 
the operation of the Holy Spirit ; while we are be- 
gotten by earthly fathers and from thence sprang 
his infinite superiority over us, because from his very 
conception he had the divine nature of the Father in 
him, being begotten from above at the very instant, 
(as we have reason to believe), when Mary believed 
the words of the angel, — " The Holy Spirit shall 
come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall 
overshadow thee ; therefore, also that holy thing 
which is begotten, shall be called the Son of God." 
— Luke 1 : 35. The Greek word, yepaw, in the orig- 
inal of the foregoing quotation, signifies either to be 
begotten, or to be born ; but King James' transla- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



197 



tors were very far from exercising a sound discern- 
ment in translating it. And yspaco is the same word 
that is translated to be born in the conversation be- 
tween Jesus and Nicodemus found in John 3 ; and 
also when found elsewhere in the Testament. There- 
fore the reader is entitled, at all times, when he meets 
with the word born, or the word begotten, in the 
New Testament, to the privilege of substituting one 
word for the other, as the Spirit may direct. And if 
a person has not the Spirit to guide him, let him 
humbly seek it, that he may really have some con- 
ception of the gospel of the Lord Jesus, always re- 
membering that spiritual things are not comprehend- 
ed through, the mental faculties of the strongest nat- 
ural intellect ; but that they must be spiritually dis- 
cerned. 

Please note it down carefully, that Jesus was be- 
gotten by the Holy Spirit, aud thus begotten from 
above. Therefore, Paul says, that Jesus, the second 
man, was the Lord from Heaven, while Adam, the 
first man, was of the earth, or from the earth, earthly ; 
and so are all Adam's descendants. 

And thus it becomes necessary, that after our nat- 
ural birth, Ave should be begotten by the Spirit, or 
begotten from above, as we come into life with an 
impure spiritual nature, while Jesus entered upon 
this life with an entirely pure spiritual nature ; and 
that is what Paul means when he says Jesus was 
without sin. — Heb. 4 : 15. Thus we perceive, that 
Jesus entered upon this life with an advantage over 
us, or, in other words, with a standing so superior to 



198 hew testament theology. 



ours at the commencement of our natural lives, that 
in the contest with Satan, the flesh, and the world, 
he was able, by pursuing the same course, which he 
requires us to pursue, to overcome all his foes ; and 
thus said to his disciples, as the great contest was 
nearing its close, " Be of good cheer, I have over- 
come the world." — John 16 : 33. " Now shall the 
prince of this world be cast out." — John 12 : 31. 

But Jesus, like us, received his body from Mary, 
his mother, and thus had an earthly and fleshly body, 
and consequently, natural desires, springing entirely 
from that natural body. And consequently, it was 
through the natural desires of the body, that Satan 
could approach and tempt him. And Paul under- 
stood this, when he wrote of Jesus, that he was 
tempted in all points as we are. But no person can 
be really tempted with any thing, unless he has some 
desire for it. 

Christians should learn to distinguish between 
being begotten of the Spirit, and born of the Spirit ; 
or its equivalent, being begotten of God, and born 
of God; or begotten from above, and born from 
above ; for the difference is similar to that of natu- 
ral conception, and natural birth. 

Being begotten by the Spirit at first, it was not 
necessary that Jesus should, like us, be begotten by 
the Spirit, or from above, after his natural birth; 
consequently, in his biography, we read of nothing of 
that character. But we do read of his being more 
fully endowed with the Holy Spirit at the time of 
his baptism with water. And in truth, I think we 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



199 



may say, that at that very time when John saw the 
Holy Spirit, in the apparent form of a dove, descend- 
ing and resting upon Jesus, he was, indeed, baptized 
with the Holy Spirit. 

Thus we find that Jesus was begotten by the 
Father, born of woman, was baptized with water, 
and then with the Holy Spirit. On our side, man is 
begotten by man, born of woman, and when he be- 
lieves the gospel, is then begotten from above ; and 
if he truly believes, and repents, and obeys the gos- 
pel, is baptized with the Holy Spirit. Jesus never 
sinned, and therefore, had no need of repentance. 
And thus it was with the little children of whom 
Jesus said, " Of such is the kingdom of heaven ; " 
as they had never sinned, and therefore, needed no 
repentance. 

We are begotten from above by believing the gos- 
pel. — James 1 : 18; 1 Cor. 4 : 15. For whoever be- 
lieves the gospel, believes on the Son of God ; and 
whoever believes on the Son of God hath eternal 
life commenced in him ; that is, he is begotten of 
the Spirit, or begotten from above. But we will con- 
tinue the comparison between the experience of 
Christ, and a Christian. We are now at that point 
where Jesus and his disciples are both baptized with 
the Holy Spirit. 

Now notice, that as soon as J esus was baptized 
with the Holy Spirit, then commenced his baptism 
of the fire, — viz., temptations, being led by the Holy 
Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil, 
or Satan. Then followed persecutions, privations, 



200 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



and death. And many true Christians have endured 
all these after having experienced the baptism of the 
Holy Spirit. Consider the case of the apostles, and 
that of many other true Christians. Did not the 
baptism of fire follow that of the Holy Spirit in the 
apostles' experience? They were not persecuted until 
baptized by the Spirit ; but when they were thus 
baptized, then followed the baptism of fire ; viz., im- 
prisonment, scourgings, and finally death in many 
cases ; and if tradition is true, every apostle was put 
to death for the gospel's sake. But the baptism of 
fire may, or it may not include death. 

I believe that the baptism of fire always follows 
the baptism of the Holy Spirit ; and I am satisfied 
that it never precedes it. And I believe the baptism 
of fire will follow that of the Spirit, if the believer 
is faithful, and also tarries long enough in the body 
to experience it ; although God may not, in every 
case, use the same means to effect it. And this, 
Christians baptized with the Holy Spirit should know, 
that they may not think " some strange thing has 
happened unto them," as it is an evidence that they 
have received such baptism. For Peter wrote to 
what may be truly termed Holy Spirit Christians, 
when he said, " Beloved, think it not strange con- 
cerning the fiery trial among you, which cometh 
upon you to prove you, as though a strange thing 
happened unto you ; but inasmuch as ye are par- 
takers of Christ's sufferings, rejoice, that at the rev- 
elation of his glory, ye may also rejoice with exceed- 
ing joy." Now, notice this, — " If ye are reproached 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 201 



for the name of Christ, blessed are ye, because the 
Spirit of glory, and the Spirit of God resteth upon 
you.'— 1 Peter 4 : 12-15. That is, the Holy Spirit 
rested upon them, as it did upon the Lord Jesus ; 
and the fiery trial through which they were then 
passing was the baptism of hre. Peter himself had 
passed through much of his, and was grounded and 
settled ; but he well knew that he had yet to follow 
his beloved Lord through that special portion of it 
which Jesus had foretold. — John 21 : 18, 19. 

And here I think it proper to remark, that many 
exceedingly foolish and worthless harangues have 
been delivered from the pulpit, which have had a 
greater tendency to disparage this distinguished 
apostle in the minds of. believers, and thus offend 
the Lord, than to accomplish good. 

And please notice that it was those persons whom 
Peter and Paul termed the elect, and who were first 
baptized with the Holy Spirit, that were enduring 
this baptism of fire. And now, disciples of John 
Calvin, suffer me, in kindness to ask, if you either 
teach or experience this baptism of fire? To what 
fiery trials are you now subjected ? What persecu- 
tions are you enduring? Paul is your favorite 
apostle ; and he tells you, " That if any man will 
live godly in Christ Jesus, he shall suffer persecu- 
tion." — 2 Tim. 3 : 12. Does that apply to you? Not 
according to my observation, which has been both a 
careful and a charitable one for thirty years. There- 
fore, are you really God's elect, or simply John Cal- 
vin's ? Please examine yourselves carefully, both 



202 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

preacher and layman, and know certainly to which 
class yon belong. Do yon love the followers of Jesns 
as he gave us commandment to do ? Are you par- 
takers of Christ's sufferings ? Do you as partakers 
of Christ's sufferings, give reliable evidence that the 
Spirit of glory and the Spirit of God rests upon 
you ? And these same questions I would ask my- 
self, and all who profess the name of Jesus, lest Ave 
be found at that day, among the reprobate, or re- 
jected. Let us ever remember, that, although 
Peter teaches the true doctrine of election, yet he 
also teaches us to make our calling and election sure. 
■ — 2 Peter 1 : 10. We should all be very careful how 
we label ourselves for heaven, lest the angels follow 
not such directions, when they are sent forth to sever 
the wicked from the just, or the tares from the 
wheat. 

At the first coming of Christ, the Jews had la- 
belled themselves as the elect people of God, and 
also the elect of Christ his Son. But did the result 
prove their conclusion correct ? Any one familiar 
with their history knows that they were greatly mis- 
taken. Let all believers make a proper application 
of the foregoing questions and remarks to them- 
selves. And let none of us think that we can 
escape the baptism of fire, if we are truly num- 
bered among the jewels of our Master. 

The Jews very unexpectedly found themselves 
reprobates, when they were considering themselves 
the elect; and for a long time had been the elect of 
God. Let us learn wisdom from such a lesson, for it 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 203 

is a truth, that now few believers progress far 
enough to even receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit 
which precedes that of fire. Can such really be sons 
of God? Believer, have you ever really been chas- 
tened by the Lord ? Have you ever experienced suf- 
ferings that are not common to other men, both to 
saint and to sinner ? Have you not been a professed 
believer long enough to have had such an experience ? 
Then, why do you write yourself down as a true child of 
God ? You may reply, I know that my Redeemer 
liveth, because he has forgiven my sins. But God 
forgave sins before either the crucifixion, or the res- 
urrection of Christ. Jesus forgave the palsied man 
his sins ; but that did not make him a child of God ; 
and have you any reason to believe that the forgive- 
ness of sins now makes one a son of God ? If so, 
produce the Scripture to prove it. But they were 
your old sins that were forgiven. Have you no new 
ones ? If you have been properly instructed upon 
this point, you will promptly admit that a stand-still 
believer, or a non-progressive believer, sins by not 
progressing ; and therefore, he has new sins ; for he 
sins by not doing what God requires him to do, as I 
will quickly show you from the Scriptures. Have 
you since you first professed the name of Christ, been 
diligently adding to your faith, courage, knowledge, 
temperance, patience, godliness, and love? Do you 
know your condition if you have not added these 
graces to your faith ? Hear the apostle, — " For he 
that lacketh these things, (these graces), is blind, 
seeing only what is near, (or closing his eyes)." That 



204 



NEW" TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



is, by your own negligence, you destroy your spiritual 
vision and comprehension of the gospel. This is 
equally true of both preacher and layman ; and when 
they are both alike in this regard, they fall into the 
ditch together, as they then constitute the class 
termed by our blessed Lord, — "The blind leading the 
blind." But the apostle says that if we diligently 
add to our faith, the above-named graces, we shall 
never stumble ; but that there shall be richly supplied 
unto us an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our 
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, — 2 Peter 1 : 1-11. 
Please to carefully read the above quotation and its 
context: for in it is the positive and comforting 
assurance, that we may become partakers of the di- 
vine nature of God, and then, the apostle tells us 
how to become so. And I would earnestly request 
the believer to carefully note the striking contrast 
there portrayed between the believer who adds to his 
faith the graces mentioned, and him who does not. 
Please notice, that it is not through one of "those 
precious promises" that we become partakers of the 
divine nature, but through them all ; and this is quite 
in harmony with Jesus' teachings, when he prays, 
— " Sanctify them through thy truth ; thy word is 
truth." And furthermore, — " Man shall not live by 
bread alone ; but by every word that proceedeth out 
of the mouth of God," John 17 ; Matt. 4 : 4. 

The foregoing remarks and quotations are in- 
tended to lead the believer to consider where he is, or 
what is his spiritual standing ; that is, whether he is 
simply begotten by the Spirit, or born from above — 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 205 



whether he is yet in an embryo state, or really born ; 
for there are very many believers, who have been 
begotten by the word of truth, but are yet unborn ; 
and they are far too well contented in that dangerous 
state. And I add, with all due respect, let some min- 
isters consider the last remark. For I desire to lead 
the reader to consider whether he has ever advanced 
to that point in his religious experience where he can 
be subject to the baptism of fire. For we may rely 
upon the fact that Christ has an order, or system, in 
regenerating man ; and to present the fact more evi- 
dently, I will now refer to Paul's teachings upon the 
same point, where he says to Christians, — "Ye have 
not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin, and 
ye have forgotten the exhortation, which reasoneth 
with you, as with sons, — My son, regard not lightly 
the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art 
reproved by him ; for whom the Lord loveth, he 
chasteneth, and scourgeth every son he receiveth. 
If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you, as 
with sons ; for what son is there whom his father 
chasteneth not ? But if ye are without chastening, 
whereof all are made partakers" — mark the last five 
words — "then are ye bastards, and not sons." Fur- 
thermore, we had fathers of our flesh to chasten us, 
and we gave them reverence ; shall we not much 
more be subject to the Father of our spirits, and 
live. For they, verily, for a few days, chastened us 
as seemed good to them ; but He for our profit, that 
we may be partakers of his holiness. * * * Follow 
peace with all men, and holiness, without which no 



206 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



man shall see the Lord," Heb. 12 : 4-14. Here Paul 
was writing to the Hebrew Christians who were en- 
during at the time the baptism of fire mentioned by 
John the Baptist, the salting with fire mentioned by 
Jesus, and the fiery trial described by Peter; and 
which Paul describes as the chastening which the 
Father administers to all his sons for their profit, 
that they may be partakers of his holiness ; that is, 
of his nature. But there is one additional, and very 
important declaration here made by Paul ; and that 
is, if we are not chastened, then we are bastards, and 
not sons ; consequently, if we are not sons of God, 
then we are not his heirs. And this fully and clearly 
agrees with what he asserts in Romans 8, — " If sons, 
then heirs ; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus 
Christ, if so be that ye suffer with him." And those 
believers who come off conquerors in this fiery trial, 
are the overcomers of Rev. 2 and 3, and of whom 
Jesus says, — "To him will I give to eat of the tree of 
life * * * and that he shall not be hurt by the sec- 
ond death; * * * and, I will give to him to sit down 
with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat 
down with my Father in his throne; * * * and, to 
him will I give authority over the nations, and he 
shall rule them with a rod of iron, &c, and I will 
make him a pillar in the temple of my God." Yes, 
Jesus says that such, the overcomers, shall not be 
hurt by the second death, and shall sit down with 
him in his throne. 

Now turn to Rev. 20 : 4-6, and read, — " And I saw 
thrones, and they sat upon them ; and I saw the souls 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



207 



of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of 
Jesus, and for the word of God * * * and they lived 
and reigned with Christ a thousand years. The rest of 
the dead lived not until the thousand years should be 
finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and 
holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection ; over 
these the second death has no power, (or jurisdiction, 
or influence)." Here we have the true elect, those 
who had experienced on earth the baptism of fire. 
These were sons, not bastards. These had become 
heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Why ? 
because they had suffered with him on the earth, where 
he suffered before. Who are heirs ? Is it the legiti- 
mate son, or the bastard child ? You reply, the legit- 
imate son, of course. Very well, Paul tells us that 
such a son God chastises. If you yet believe that 
you can inherit the kingdom of God without this 
baptism, then turn to Acts 14 : 22, where we are told 
that both Paul and Barnabas taught the disciples, 
that it is through many tribulations we must enter 
the kingdom of God. And this harmonizes with the 
saying of Jesus, — "Blessed are ye when men shall 
reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner 
of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice, and 
be exceedingly glad; for great is your reward in 
heaven." And thus the honest-hearted Christian 
will find, that the teachings of Jesus and all of the 
apostles agree upon this question : but the disobedi- 
ent will not see it ; for all such desire to get into 
heaven "some other way," than by the way of the 
cross of Christ. 



208 



new testament theology. 



And now, at this point, I want to submit to all 
Christians the following questions: Has not the 
church lost sight of the true cross of Christ ? Please 
to carefully consider this important question. Is it 
not far more reasonable and just, if God has an elect 
people, that such elect should suffer with Christ, as 
they are to be joint heirs with him to the kingdom 
prepared for them from the foundation of the world ? 
—Matt. 25 : 34. Paul tells us that the author of 
our salvation was made perfect through sufferings ; 
then is it not reasonable that the heirs of the king- 
dom should be made perfect in the same manner? 
It is not only reasonable, but just, and the Scriptures 
teach us that it is so. There is the true cross of 
Christ, and there is also a spurious cross of Satan's 
manufacture which his ministers are now preaching. 
Reader, if you are in any degree, one of those min- 
isters, be warned in time, or you will be severely hurt 
by the second death. 

That spurious cross may always be known by its 
having no baptism of fire, no salting with fire, no 
fiery trials, no chastening of the Lord, and very lit- 
tle Christian sympathy for those who are enduring 
the same ; and in many cases, no Christian sympa- 
thy at all, although there may be acts of kindness 
extended in such cases. But let all perform such 
acts in the best spirit they have, and humbly pray to 
know more of the way of salvation, and for the lov- 
ing sympathetic spirit of our Redeemer, which will 
enable us to truly " weep with those who weep, and 
to rejoice with those who rejoice." 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



209 



I wish the reader to remember that I have been 
speaking of the joint-heirs with Jesus Christ ; for it 
is they who experience the baptism of fire, that they 
may also be made perfect through sufferings, as was 
our Saviour. Some preacher may say in reply to 
this : "But Jesus was to be our great high priest, and 
it was necessary that he should experience all he did, 
that he might sympathize with us in our own infir- 
mities." That is so but joint-heirs are to be priests 
of God and of Christ, and reign with him the thous- 
and years. — Rev. 20 : 6. And think you that during 
such priesthood and reign they will have nothing to 
do ? This question I may answer hereafter. 

I have dwelt longer on the baptism of fire than I 
intended, but not too long ; and we will now finish 
considering verses 16 and 12 of Luke 3. 

Speaking of Jesus, John says, " Whose fan is in 
his hand, thoroughly to cleanse his threshing-floor, 
and to gather the wheat into his garner ; but the 
chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire." 

The threshing-floor is primarily Palestine, and 
then, the entire earth, which Christ will finally pu- 
rify in like manner, as he tells us that the field is the 
world in the parable of the wheat and the tares ; and 
the wheat are the good ; and the chaff are the 
wicked, or the wickedness that is in the world. This 
work Jesus has been engaged in during many centu- 
ries. And we are told that he will finally cut the 
work short in righteousness. And in considering 
the baptism of fire, I think the reader may have ob- 
tained quite a correct view of the meaning of fire as 



210 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



it is used in the New Testament ; for we have seen 
that it signifies the means or instrumentalities that 
are used for the purification of God's children and 
heirs. And if this is so, is it not fair and proper to 
conclude that fire signifies the same when used in 
connection with the rest of mankind ? We all ad- 
mit that there is more or less chaff, by nature, in 
every person. This has to be consumed by the 
chastening hand of our Father; therefore, where 
there is the most chaff, there will be the most fire ; 
and that chastening fire will be unquenchable till all 
the chaff is consumed. We don't say that we quench 
a fire, when we let it burn till all the fuel is con- 
sumed ; for then the fire goes out of itself. Again, 
there is no good reason, when we have once ascer- 
tained the true meaning of a word or phrase used by 
the Lord and his apostles, and also by the prophets, for 
giving it a different meaning ; and especially, when 
that different meaning conflicts with the love, and 
justice, and mercy of God. In fact, reason, mercy 
and truth, in this case, are directly opposed to it ; 
and God is the infinite source of all three. And in 
addition to all this, we are told over and over, that 
God's mercy endureth forever. 

Therefore, these things being so, we are led to en- 
quire, if there are no other persons who will be final- 
ly saved but the elect of God. Please remember, 
that, for the present, this is the question at issue. 
And remember, it is not whether all mankind will be 
saved, but whether any portion of mankind will be 
saved besides the elect, whose case we have been con- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



211 



sidering in the foregoing pages, and who are declared 
to be heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesns Christ. 
For to speak in the mildest, and the most guarded 
manner, I feel that I ought to assert, that the decla- 
ration, that God, from all eternity, did elect the 
smaller portion of the human family to be saved, 
and left the remaining portion to endure eternal and 
ceaseless suffering is a vile libel upon the pure and 
spotless character of the Most High ; and could have 
originated only with the father of lies, and the ene- 
my of man. And as I have already told you, Satan 
has had a very active hand in creed-making ; and he 
well knows the great value of a lie in his business, 
and where it will pay him the most. 

WILL ANY BESIDES THE ELECT BE SAVED? 

But at the commencement of the investigation of 
the question, whether any will be saved besides the 
elect of God, I remark that the eleventh chapter of 
Romans, and the 18th, 19th and 20th verses of the 
third chapter of 1 Peter, read in connection with 
the 5th and 6th verses of the 4th chapter, are a re- 
markable key to a vast amount of gospel truth, to 
an honest seeker for the truth, if such seeker will 
keep himself free from preconceived erroneous ideas, 
and leave results to God, to whom they solely be- 
long. Please read Rom. 11 carefully, and then turn 
to page 7, and read my remarks upon it ; and care- 
fully consider both. 

The quotation from Peter reads as follows : " Be- 
cause Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous 



212 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; 
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened in the 
spirit, in which also he went and preached unto the 
spirits in prison, which aforetime were disobedient, 
when the long-suffering of God waited in the days 
of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which 
a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. 
* * * * For unto this end was the gospel 
preached, even to the dead, that they might be judged 
according to men in the flesh, but live according to 
God in the spirit." Or paraphrasing the last verse — 
For this purpose, or for this reason, was the gospel 
preached even to the dead, that they, having heard 
the gospel, might be judged by the gospel, in like 
manner as we will be judged by the gospel, who have 
heard it while tarrying here in the body, and that 
they might live in the spirit world, according to the 
teachings of the gospel, which expresses the will of 
God concerning us ; and moreover, teaches us how 
to conform to his will, and become partakers of his 
nature. 

When Peter wrote this verse, he evidently had in 
his mind what he had just expressed in the three 
preceding verses quoted; as one can see that his 
mind would naturally revert to what he had there 
expressed, after saying of the wicked about him, 
"Who shall give account to him that is ready to 
judge the quick and the dead," verse 5, chapter 4. 
Having said that God would soon judge the dead as 
well as the living, then in a few words, he gives the 
reason why Christ had preached the gospel in the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



213 



spirit world ; that is, that they might be judged by, 
or according to the gospel. For Jesus says, " My 
words shall judge you in the last day." The people 
of Noah's day who were swept away by the flood, 
had never heard the gospel while dwelling upon the 
earth, and God would not judge them by the gospel, 
until they had heard it, and thus had an opportunity 
to either accept, or reject it, — to either obey, or 
disobey it. 

It is really absurd to talk about Noah's having 
preached the gospel to any one ; for Noah did not 
have the gospel himself. No one on the earth had it, 
till Christ came. We are told that Noah was a 
preacher of righteousness. So were Moses, Samuel, 
David, Elijah, Isaiah, and many others ; but they 
were not preachers of the gospel, as I have already 
shown they did not have it. And Paul says, that 
the gospel plan had been hid from all eyes, and gen- 
erations. — Col. 1 : 26. And Peter says, that, even 
in his day the gospel was hidden, or withheld from 
the angels. — 1 Peter 1 : 12. And let some one, who 
says that Noah preached the gospel, tell us what 
Jesus meant when he said to his disciples, "For verily 
I say unto you, that many prophets and righteous 
men desired to see the things ye see, and saw them 
not ; and to hear the things ye hear, and heard them 
not."— Matt. 13 : 17. Was it not the gospel that the 
disciples were hearing from Jesus' lips? Peter says 
that the gospel was hid from the angels : and Paul 
says that it is through the church, that the gospel is 
to be preached to them ; and in the same connection 



214 NEW TESTAMENT TELEOLOGY. 



tells us that it had been hid in God who created all 
things. For he says, " Unto me, who am less than 
the least of all saints, was this grace given, (or favor 
shown), to preach unto the Gentiles the unsearcha- 
ble riches of Christ ; and to make all men see what 
is the dispensation of the mystery, which from all 
ages has been hid in God who created all things : to 
the intent that now unto the principalities and the 
powers in the heavenly places, might be made known 
through the church the manifold wisdom of God, ac- 
cording to the purpose of the ages, which he pur- 
posed in Christ Jesus our Lord." — Eph. 3 : 7—11. 
Please notice that Paul says God had for ages kept 
the gospel wholly to himself, or within his own mind. 
And that it is through the church, that the gospel is 
preached to the inhabitants of heaven, the angels. 
This is a portion of the great glory bestowed upon 
the true church of Christ. But the reader may ask, 
"Why are you so particular in regard to who 
preached the gospel to the people of Noah's day ? " 
First, because we need the whole gospel plan. Sec- 
ondly, because the usual teaching of the church upon 
this point, leaves every generation before Christ's 
time without a knowledge of the gospel, except 
Noah's generation. If I should admit that Noah did 
preach the gospel to his generation, then it cannot 
be shown that any other generation had the gospel 
between Adam's day and that of Christ. And no 
man can be saved without the gospel ; for it is the 
gospel which gives us a knowledge of Christ, and 
the plan of salvation through him, and consequent- 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



215 



ly, a knowledge of Gocl. Do all the teachings of the 
Old Testament do it ? Certainly not, and that, be- 
cause the authors of that book did not have the gos- 
pel. It was hidden in the infinite mind of the 
Father till Christ came. There is no other method 
of salvation but through Jesus Christ ; and in order 
to be saved through Christ, we must believe in him ; 
and in order to believe in him, we must first hear of 
him ; and that rule applies from the creation to the 
end of time, through all ages. And thus it follows 
that the heathen of our own day who die without a 
knowledge of the gospel, must hear it at some future 
period. And when shall that be ? For no one can 
believe without hearing ; or in other words, no per- 
son can believe in any thing until he know of its ex- 
istence. 

Now I have already shown from Paul's teachings 
that from Adam to Moses man was without law ; also, 
that where there is no law, sin is not imputed, as 
then, there is no law, or rule of conduct, to be vio- 
lated. It therefore follows that the people living be- 
tween Adam and Moses, a period of about 2,500 
years, had no sin imputed unto them, and therefore, 
are not under condemnation. Consequently, they 
never will be under condemnation, until they hear 
the gospel, and reject it, or disobey it. And it was 
for this reason, that Christ went into the spirit world 
and preached the gospel, and that, not only to the 
people of Noah's day, but also to all the inhabitants 
of the spirit world ; or in other words, to all the 
dead ; that hearing the gospel, they might be judged 



216 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

by the gospel, or, "according to men in the flesh," who 
now hear the gospel. The Protestant denominations, 
by the construction they put upon Peter's language, 
throw away the only means known to us of extend- 
ing the gospel, with its life-giving power, to. people of 
any, and every generation, who have died without 
hearing it. Let people, and especially preachers, 
who say, that in the Testament we have the gospel, 
not distort its language, in order to make it conform 
to their views of what is true and useful ; but rather, 
so transform their own views that they may conform 
to the truths of the gospel, and leave the results 
with the infinite Author of the plan of salvation. 
Protestants fear, that if they take the plain and sim- 
ple language of Peter as it reads, they will let in the 
Roman doctrine of purgatory — and thus they fear 
the result which is the Lord's ; and thus regarding 
the result, instead of trusting in the truth, they im- 
pair God's plan of salvation by distorting the truth, 
and endeavoring to make the apostle say what he 
does not intend to say. In verse 5, chap. 4, Peter 
had just remarked that God " is ready to judge the 
quick and the dead" ; that is, the living and the 
dead ; and then says, — " For unto this end was the 
gospel preached unto the dead," etc. ; so it is prepos- 
terous to say that Peter by the word dead in the 
sixth verse, meant anything different from what he 
did in the fifth. So it is impossible to truly say, that 
by the term dead in the sixth verse, Peter meant 
dead in trespasses and sins, and thus give the preach- 
ing to Noah, by saying that Noah preached to peo- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



217 



pie who were spiritually dead, instead of literally so. 
Again, I will suggest to the reader, that verse sixth 
would have been wholly superfluous and inapplicable, 
if Peter had intended to say that it was Noah who 
preached, as no explanation or further remark would 
have been needed. 

I think that the reader will perceive from the fore- 
going remarks, that if Christ did the preaching, that 
is, really preached the gospel to the dead, that all 
those dead were brought within the scope of the gos- 
pel, equally with those who hear it during the life in 
the body. And we have no reason to believe that 
Christ's preaching was confined to the dead of Noah's 
generation, but rather, that it embraced all the dead 
up to the time of Jesus' resurrection ; as Peter 
says of him, being put to death in the flesh but 
quickened in the spirit, &c, showing the time when 
the preaching was done. But if we say it was Noah 
who preached, then we only bring the people of his 
day within the scope of the gospel. And suffer me 
to ask, why God should have the gospel preached to 
them only, of all the generations before Christ? 
Again, I have already called the reader's attention 
to the fact, that Jesus said of the Jews, that they 
would not have had sin, if he had not spoken unto 
them words which no other man had ever spoken ; 
that is, he had pointed out to them the way of life, 
and they, by rejecting the truth, retained their sins, 
or caused their sins to be imputed to them, see John 
15 : 22-24. And this view of the text agrees with 
the following words of the Lord, — "And this is the 



218 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



judgment, that the light is come into the world, .and 
men loved the darkness rather than the light ; for 
their works were evil," John 3 : 19. 

God's plan for preaching the gospel was not re- 
stricted to the living, but also extended to the dead, 
as Peter well knew when he wrote the words under 
consideration ; and no person had greater facilities 
for knowing and understanding the whole scheme of 
salvation, and its workings, than Peter, being even 
so honored by the Father, that the Son declared him 
"blessed," when Peter said to Jesus, " Thou art the 
Christ, the Son of the living God" ; and Jesus in his 
reply, said, "Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah," etc. 
* * * and upon this rock will I build my church, and 
the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." And 
what are the gates of Hades, but death ? And this 
agrees with Jesus' words to Martha, — "He that be- 
lieveth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." 
By the favor of our Heavenly Father, all men are 
privileged to hear the gospel either in this, or in the 
spirit world. 

IF any reader believes that after this life, man has 
no living existence and consciousness until the res- 
urrection of the body, I refer him to these words of 
Jesus, — "Now he is not a God of the dead, but of 
the living ; for all live unto him," Luke 20 : 38. And 
also, to the condition of the rich man and Laz- 
arus, the beggar. And let such reader especially 
mark the words, — "For all live unto him." The de- 
parted may be dead unto us, but they are not dead 
to their infinite Creator ; and he reaches and influ- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



219 



ences them in that life, as in this. If it is not so, 
why should the Saviour, who was the very embodi- 
ment of truth, present to ns a scene in the other 
world, which never had any existence, or any coun- 
terpart ? For under the circumstances, such repre- 
sentation would only serve to blind and mislead us. 
Reader, about eighteen hundred years have passed 
away since the apostles fell asleep ; and do you be- 
lieve that they have been in a torpid and unconscious 
state ever since, while their Lord and Master has 
been constantly engaged in the great work of salva- 
tion, and subduing all things unto himself, that he may 
deliver the kingdom into the hands of the Father, 
that God may be all in all ? We agree that God 
works by instrumentalities. Then why should we 
not believe that our Saviour is now working in like 
manner ? And if this is so, what equal, or more appro- 
priate instruments can we conceive of, than the 
twelve apostles of the Lord who followed him here 
on earth in the work of regeneration and perfection, 
being baptized with the same baptism that he was 
baptized with, according to his word ; and thus be- 
ing made perfect through sufferings, as was their 
Lord, are they not especially qualified to aid their 
beloved Lord, who redeemed them and us from 
death, in the glorious work effecting the restitution 
of all things ? Reader, why should not this be so ? 
It is far more reasonable than believing that the en- 
tire primitive church, resplendent and glorious as it 
was with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, has been lying 
dormant, inactive and useless during the past eigh- 



220 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

teen hundred years, while our Redeemer has been 
actively engaged in the great work of of subduing, 
or subjecting all things unto himself, 1 Cor. 15 : 21- 
28. For it is through the church, as his co-worker, 
or medium of communication, that God makes 
known, or will make known, in the heavens, to the 
angels, the glorious plan of redemption, which Peter 
said was hid from the angels in his day, and which 
Paul said was to be made known to them through 
the church. And to clearly establish this point, I 
shall now refer the reader to Paul's remarkable and 
profound letter to the Ephesians ; for I know of noth- 
ing in all of the apostles' writings, that sinks deeper 
or rises higher, than some portions of this epistle 
which are indeed sublime, and exceedingly precious 
to the meek and lowly in heart ; and who have so 
grown in Christ, the blessed One, that they can re- 
ceive something more than simply the milk of the 
word, or the first principles of the doctrine of Christ, 
such as baptism, laying on of the hands, resurrection 
of the dead, and eternal judgment, Heb. 5 : 11-14 ; 
6 : 1-3. 

The reader may observe, if he will, that the term 
heavenly places, or heavenly things, which seem to 
signify heavenly conditions, or heavenly localities, or 
both, is often used in this epistle ; and the term evi- 
dently signifies both the higher and highest state or 
condition of the spiritual universe ; and I mean by 
the latter term both the heavens and the earth. 
That the term "heavenly places" embraces the spir- 
itual condition of the church on earth is evident 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



221 



from chap. 1, verse 3, where Paul says that God hath 
blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heav- 
enly places in Christ. That the term signifies the 
highest conditions in the heavens is evident by Paul's 
saying that the Father raised Christ from the dead, 
and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly 
places, far above all rule and authority, and power 
and dominion, and every name that is named, etc., 1 : 
20-23. 1 See also 2 : 4-8, and 6 : 12. These refer- 
ences, when carefully considered by the spiritual 
christian, serve to prepare the the mind for the fol- 
lowing language, — "To the intent, that now unto 
the principalities and the powers in the heavenly 
places, might be made known through the church, 
the manifold wisdom of God, according to the pur- 
pose of the ages which he purposed in Christ Jesus 
our Lord," 3 : 10, 11. But read the 9th verse where 
it is said that this wisdom had been hid with God 
from the beginning of time. 

From the foregoing quotations, it is quite evident 
to me, that the term heavenly places, comprehends 
the church on earth, the intermediate spiritual world, 
and the heavens ; for by the term is embraced, or ex- 
pressed, the place where Christ and the Father are — 
where the church is — where the angelic host is, and 
also where the evil spirits are : for Paul says to the 
church, — "For our wrestling is not against flesh and 
blood, but against the principalities, against the 
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this 
world, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in 
heavenly places." Therefore he says, "Put on the 



222 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand 
against the wiles of the devil." And Jesus tells us 
that the devil is the prince of this world. 

But now having shown that the term heavenly 
places embraces the heavens, the foregoing language 
of Paul shows that the church has a very important 
duty to yet perform to the angelic host by unfolding 
to them the wisdom and love of God embodied in 
the gospel of our Saviour ; as the principalities and 
powers in the heavenly places in chap. 3 : 10, cannot 
mean the same as the principalities and powers men- 
tioned in chap. 6 : 12, against whom the church has 
to contend and wrestle ; for the latter are described 
as having Satan at their head as their leader. And 
the latter are mentioned as the enemies of the church 
which she has to fight, while the former are men- 
tioned as heavenly beings who are to be instructed 
by the church, not fought ; and whom Peter de- 
scribes as being desirous to look into the gospel plan 
of salvation, by which, (through Christ), the Father 
determined to, and is now reconciling all things to 
himself, whether they be things in earth, or things 
in heaven, Col. 1 : 20. From which it would seem 
that the heavens are not yet in the pure and glori- 
ous state which God intends they shall be ; and as 
Jesus declared that all power was given to him in 
heaven and on earth, he is now engaged in subjecting 
all things to himself, and thus to God. And as Paul 
tells us that it is through the church that the gospel 
is made known to the inhabitants of heaven, and as 
the church is a co-worker with Christ, why should 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



223 



not all the followers of Jesus on the earth, when 
they pass into the spirit world, continue to labor 
there with their Lord and Redeemer? And why 
should the Saviour have deprived himself of the ser- 
vices of his chosen apostles, and that of the entire 
primitive church during the past eighteen hundred 
years, while he has been laboring to reconcile all 
things unto the Father ? 

Xotice that it was some years after the ascension 
of our Lord, that Peter asserted that the angels de- 
sired to look into and comprehend the gospel and its 
wonderful economy, so it was not then unfolded to 
them. But as Paul tells us, that work was to be 
done through the church, it may have commenced 
when the primitive church, with the apostles at its 
head, finished its glorious work here on the earth, 
which was then allotted to them to perform. But 
whether the saints who have passed away, or passed 
out of what Paul terms the body of our humiliation. 
(Phil. 3 : 21), have yet entered upon their great and 
glorious work, or have not, it seems quite certain, 
that the saints of God have such a work to perform. 
And as Peter tells us that the Redeemer eno-ao-ed in 
the work of preaching the gospel to the so-called 
dead, but who are alive to God. according to the 
teachings of Jesus, it seems quite reasonable, that 
departed saints of every generation should be en- 
gaged in the same work. Let the reader consider 
the billions upon billions that have passed from the 
earth without any knowledge of either God or Christ, 
and he may catch a slight conception of the vast 



224 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



work that was, and is yet to be performed in bring- 
ing them to a knowledge of the truth as it is in Christ, 
and that truth, which is the gospel, they must have, 
as well as we, to bring them to Christ. And the 
Bible does not teach that the whole gospel will be 
instantaneously flashed upon their minds, any more 
than upon ours ; and therefore, we have no right to 
assert any such thing. It is a mere conception of 
the human brain, or of Satan, as he delights in any 
sort of a lie. 

We believe, and we know, that people without a 
knowledge of God are both intellectually and morally 
degraded while they tarry here in the body ; there- 
fore, we have reason to believe, that their progress 
when they may hear the gospel after the death of the 
body, must be as slow as ours, who hear it now. 
Then why should eighteen hundred years be lost 
from this great work? And that, especially, when 
Peter tells us that Jesus commenced the work ? 
Here on earth Jesus and the apostles commenced by 
teaching the first principles of the gospel, and as- 
cended to higher principles, as their hearers could 
bear them; and why should it not be the same 
there ? 

I both respect and love our Advent brethren, be- 
cause they preach directly, as a part of the gospel, 
the return of our Lord to this earth to be glorified 
where he suffered and was put to shame ; and that 
he shall reign here on earth with his saints, where he 
and many of them were cruelly condemned and pur 
to death, which glorious truth is but little taught 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 225 

now by the teachers of the various sects. But our 
Advent brethren were drawn into the business of 
creed making, (and Satan came also, as he naturally 
feels that his interests demand his attention on all 
such occasions), and engrafted upon their creed the 
theory, as a doctrinal principle, that all mankind, 
from the day they put off this earthly tabernacle, 
whether saint or sinner, remain in an entirely uncon- 
scious state until the day of judgment, or the coming 
of the Lord Jesus. Consequently, they believe that 
nothing can be done either by, or for the departed 
during that period, as they believe that they are 
wholly incapable of either acting, or being acted 
upon. Such brethren with many others, say that 
Noah preached the gospel to the spirits in prison, 
when Noah neither had the gospel which he might 
preach, or any spirits in prison to whom he could 
preach the gospel. In justice to the Advent breth- 
ren, I will say, that some of them do not hold the 
theory of the unconscious state of the departed. 
Therefore, I hope the latter will not consider them- 
selves included by any remarks which are not appli- 
cable to them. 

SIGNIFICATION OF VARIOUS WORDS AS USED IN 
THE SCRIPTURES. 

Here I think it well to call attention to a few 
words in the New Testament which have different 
meanings in different connections, so that a person 
will certainly become confused if he gives those 
words the same literal meaning in every case, and 



226 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



will also be led into error. And here arises a serious 
difficulty for many earnest seekers for gospel truth. 
Among such words are die, death, and perish, with 
their derivatives ; and I will add sleep, asleep and 
hate. And that the reader may readily see the pe- 
culiar manner in which they are used, I will give cer- 
tain passages containing them. " He that loveth his 
life, shall lose it ; and he that hateth his life in this 
world, shall keep it unto life eternal." — John 12 : 25. 
"If a man cometh unto me, and hateth not his own 
father, and mother, and wife, and children, and breth- 
ren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot 
be my disciple." — Luke 14 : 26. "He that findeth 
his life shall lose it ; he that loseth his life shall find 
it."— Matt. 10 : 39. " For God so loved the world, 
that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever 
believeth on him should not perish but have eternal 
life." — John 3 i 12. " For as many as have sinned 
without law, shall also perish without law ; and as 
many as have sinned under law, shall be judged by 
law." — Rom. 2 : 12. "For we are a sweet savour of 
Christ unto God in them who are being saved, and 
in them who are perishing ; to the one, a savour 
from death unto death ; to the other, a savour from 
life unto life."— 2 Cor. 15 : 16. " But though our 
outward man is perishing, yet our inward man is re- 
newed from day to day." — 4 : 16. " Then they also 
who are fallen asleep in Christ have perished." — 1 
Cor. 15 : 18. " The Lord is not slack concerning 
his promise, as some count slackness; but is long- 
suffering to us-ward, not wishing that any should 



NEW TESTA3IE2ST THEOLOGY. 



227 



perish, but that all should come to repentance." — 2 
~Pet. 3:9. Whosoever liveth and believeth on me 
shall never die." — John 11 : 26. " Verily, verily, I say 
unto you, if a man keep my word, he shall never see 
death." — 8 : 51. " Our friend Lazarus is fallen 
asleep ; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep. 
* * * Then Jesus said unto them plainly, Laza- 
rus is dead." — John 11 : 11-14, 

Any enlightened Christian will not say, that Jesus 
intended to tell us that we must literally hate our 
natural life, or to really hate or even dislike our pa- 
rents, whom we are commanded to both love and 
honor. Then, what does he mean ? In all cases to ac- 
quire the truth, we must diligently compare Scripture 
with Scripture ; and by so doing we may arrive at the 
truth, if we have the aid cf the Holy Spirit. What is 
meant by hating in the foregoing quotations? It is, 
that we must turn away from every thing and every 
body that prevents our complying with what the gos- 
pel requires of us ; and this view is in keeping with the 
teaching of Jesus when he says, " He that renoun- 
ceth not all that he hath, cannot be my disciple." 
And that is why Jesus once said to his mother, 
" Woman, what have I to do with thee ? " — John 2 : 
4. And also to Peter, or rather, to the spirit which 
at that time was in Peter, " Get thee behind me, 
Satan, for thou art an offence to me." For I cannot 
think, that he would call one of his most devoted 
disciples, Satan. In the first instance, the Lord de- 
sired Mary to understand that he had renounced 
every thing of an earthly nature ; and in the second 



228 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



instance, to teacli the same, and that such renuncia- 
tion included his natural life, which he was about to 
lay down for the life of the world. — John 6 : 15. And 
let us remember that Jesus died for us while we were 
sinners ; and that he requires us to follow in his foot- 
steps, and like him, to overcome the world. There- 
fore, Jesus says, "He that hateth his life in this 
world, shall keep it unto life eternal ; " that is, he 
shall never die. He may lay off this earthly taber- 
nacle, this body of our humiliation ; but we do not die, 
as do the wicked, if we are truly the Lord's. There- 
fore, there must be a very great difference, separate 
and apart from the question of happiness and un- 
happiness, between the state of the righteous, and 
that of the wicked in the spirit world. We know 
that skillful physicians have sometimes pronounced 
people dead who were not, although every thing in- 
dicated that such parties were actually dead. But 
God who fully comprehends the entire construction 
of man, and his most minute parts, both soul, body 
and spirit, well knew that animation was only sus- 
pended; and we should remember that our Creator, 
having infinite knowledge and power, can suspend 
all motion in man, either of a spiritual, or of a phys- 
ical character, and for as long or short a time, as he 
pleases. Now please mark what I say ; and that is, 
that God can do all this, whether man be in this life, 
or in the next, with more ease than a man can sus- 
pend the motion of machinery which he has con- 
structed, and is running, by shutting off the motive 
power. Let man cling fast to the great truth, that 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 229 

with God all thing are possible, and not be telling 
what God can do, and what he cannot. Satan in- 
tensely hates that great truth, for therein is hid much 
true wisdom, which renders it a strong anchor for 
the storm-beaten Christian. And along side of this 
truth place another. God is love ! The wisest of 
this world say, that they are just upon the thresh- 
hold of knowledge, while the simple think they have 
learned nearly all. And is it not so with our relig- 
ious teachers ? 

Jesus said both of Lazarus and of the maiden 
whom he raised from the dead, that they slept. And 
it is to be remarked that this term, or its equiv- 
alent is used in speaking of Christians who have 
passed away. Stephen is said to have fallen asleep. 
— Acts 7 : 60. And especially, it is used by Paul 
upon such occasions, as in Acts 15 : 6, when he says 
that some believers are fallen asleep. And verse 18, 
when speaking of the resurrection, he says, " If the 
dead are not raised, then they also who are fallen 
asleep in Christ have perished." See also 1 Thess. 
4 : 13, 14, 15, and 2 Pet. 3 : 4, for the word asleep as 
applied to Christians who have passed from earth. 
And in connection with these, consider that the 
Lord says, " That he who hateth his life, shall keep 
it unto life eternal — he that keepeth my word shall 
never see death — he that believeth in me shall never 
die," and then tell me how a true Christian can ever 
die. Notice that Jesus first said of Lazarus that he 
slept, and that he was going to wake him out of his 
sleep ; but afterwards, to make them understand him, 



230 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



he told them plainly that Lazarus was dead ; and this, 
it should be remembered occurred before the resur- 
rection of Jesus. And Paul says that although the 
physical man perishes, yet the inward man of the 
Christian is renewed day by day ; and if this is so, 
as we know it is, how can 'the inward man die, al- 
though the body does die ? For the spiritual inward 
man has been increasing, that is, gaining greater and 
greater vitality daily, while the natural man, the 
body, or the tabernacle of the real living and in- 
creasing man, has been daily decaying, so that at the 
very moment the two separate, the real, spiritual, 
living man has more vitality than ever before, and is 
in no condition to die ; and therefore cannot die. 
Here see eternal life. Then why should not Jesus 
say, " He that keepeth my words shall never see 
death ? " Please remember that no man dies a nat- 
ural death except from some disease, or the natural 
decay of the body. Neither does the spiritual man. 
But the natural man may, by some sudden event, 
die in good health ; but no such event awaits the in- 
ward man. But how is it with the sinner ? Does 
not both the inward and the outward man perish day 
by day? If so, then they are both perishing, or 
sinking together daily. Therefore, when the two 
separate, as both have been decaying, or perishing, 
we are led to ask, what is the condition of each ? As 
to the outward man of the sinner, we know that is 
dead ; but is the inward man dead also ? As the in- 
ward man has been constantly decaying, he has been 
approaching death continually, but does he reach the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 231 



point of death at the same moment the outward man 
does ? Does not that depend upon how great a sin- 
ner a man is ? For sin causes the sickness of the 
soul, as righteousness gives the soul health. 

Reader, permit me to ask if your inward man is 
being renewed day by day ? Or are you perishing ? 
And let us, who profess the name of Christ, ask ouv- 
selves the same question. Let us examine ourselves 
closely and honestly, lest we be condemned with the 
world. For if we would judge ourselves, we should 
not be judged. But when we are judged, we are 
chastened by the Lord, that we should not be con- 
demned with the world. — Rom. 11 : 31, 32. 

We now approach the consideration of a word 
which will especially require the reader to keep all 
sectarian teachings out of sight, thought and hear- 
ing, as we are frequently influenced by both truths 
and falsehoods when we are not thinking of them. 

The word, referred to, is perish, which we will ex- 
amine by comparing Scripture with Scripture, and 
by the aid of the Holy Spirit. For hundreds of 
years the church has construed the word perish to 
signify eternal punishment, or as resulting in eternal 
punishment, whenever used in the Scriptures, unless 
the context very plainly showed that the word re- 
ferred solely to natural things ; and even then, in 
many cases, they have given it a twist in that direc- 
tion. For instance, when Jesus said to the Jews, "Un- 
less you repent, ye shall all likewise perish," he had 
no reference to punishment after death, but their de- 
struction by the Romans. Yet the ministry have 



232 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



construed it to signify eternal punishment, In that 
case it referred solely to temporal things; but in 
many cases it refers to the spiritual condition of man 
both present and future ; and it is in the latter con- 
nection we will consider it. But as perishing tends, 
or leads to death, or dissolution, and as death is the 
opposite of life, it becomes necessary to first consid- 
er life, and the source of life. For eternal life is 
from God alone. Some one may say, " So is tempo- 
ral life." That is so ; for all life both animal and veg- 
etable is from him. But God alone, both in and of 
himself, hath immortality. Thus eternal life is a 
part of God's nature ; and he imparts such life to 
whom he will. But is the common, or general idea, 
that man, at his natural birth, has eternal life in him, 
correct? The prevalent idea is that a man unre- 
generated has an eternal life within, and therefore, 
he will live forever in eternal misery because of his 
sins. If this is so, why does Jesus speak of God's 
destroying both soul and body in Gehenna (hell) ? 
And if man from his natural birth, (that is from the 
time of such birth), is immortal, or has eternal life 
in him, why did God say, " Behold the man is be- 
come as one of us to know good and evil : and now 
lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree 
of life, and eat and live forever " ? — Gen. 3 : 22. 
And in the next two verses we read, " Therefore, 
the Lord God sent him (man) forth from the garden 
of Eden to till the ground from whence he was taken. 
So he drove out the man : and he placed at the east 
of the garden of Eden, cherubims and a flaming 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 233 

sword which turned every way, to keep the way of 
the tree of life."— Gen. 3 : 23, 24 Here God him- 
self tells us that man did not have eternal life, or 
the power to live forever, and that he drove man out 
of the garden, that he might not acquire eternal life 
as he had done the knowledge of good and evil. Or 
in other words, we are here told, that man did not 
have eternal life at that time, aud God erected an im- 
passable barrier which prevented him from acquiring 
it. Please notice that the ministry entirely beg the 
question, when they say that man had the power 
within him to live forever, until he transgressed. 
For instead of teaching such a theory, God's word 
teaches the contrary. In fact, God had reserved 
from man the power to live forever, as much as he 
had the knowledge of good and evil. It is quite 
natural when we read that God told man, that when 
he ate of the tree of knowledge of good or evil, he 
should die, to jump at the conclusion, that if he had 
not disobeyed God, he would have lived forever ; 
and especially when we are so taught from our in- 
fancy by our parents, Sunday school teachers, and 
the ministry, whom we both love and respect. Adam 
had a temporal life both before his transgression, and 
after it ; and he terminated that temporal life by his 
transgression. I appeal to you, candid reader, to 
say, if it is not absurd to assert that Adam had eter- 
nal life at first, lost it by transgression, and would 
have recovered it back again, if God had not driven 
him out of the garden to prevent his doing so ? 
Please notice that theologians tell us he would have 



234 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



lived in the body forever, if he had not sinned, and 
would have had an eternity of happiness on this ter- 
restrial sphere. But reader, that is all mere decla- 
mation ; for that was not to be, and therefore, it is 
all folly to talk of what Adam might have enjoyed, 
when God had not prepared any such enjoyment for 
him ; and what God don't provide, cannot be. Such 
talk, when sifted and tried by God's word is a mere 
fancy of the human brain. For notice, God provided 
a Saviour before man was created, in whom was eter- 
nal life, and through him alone is eternal life for 
man. Paul tells us that Adam, the first man, was of 
the earth, earthy — the second man is the Lord from 
heaven. " The first Adam became a living soul. 
The last Adam, a life-giving spirit. Howbeit that is 
not first which is spiritual, but that which is natu- 
ral ; then that which is spiritual. As is the earthy, 
such are they also, that are earthy ; and as is the 
heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And 
as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall 
also, (or let us also), bear the image of the heavenly. 
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual 
one." — 1 Cor. 15 : 44-49. Here in a very few words, 
Paul tells us what Adam the first man was, and also 
what we are at first, until we experience the new 
birth, and put on the new man from heaven. The 
last man, Jesus, is the life-giving spirit. Notice, he 
tells us that the natural man is first, and then fol- 
lows the spiritual man. 

We ought to be willing to take Adam and his de- 
scendants, as we find them according to the teach- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



235 



ing sof the Scriptures ; and it is of no consequence 
llow much those teachings interfere with, and even 
sweep away our preconceived ideas. And we ought 
to be both willing and desirous to accredit to Christ 
all that we receive through him ; and therefore, if 
we are, by nature, destitute of eternal life, and we 
receive it from him, we should give him, with the 
Father, the praise and the glory. If a man don't 
start right, when he commences a journey, he may 
never get upon the straight road during the whole 
trip ; and he might even cross the direct road, with- 
out recognizing it ; and is not that really the case 
with many believers ? 

Reader, I think I have plainly shown you from 
Gen. 3 : 22-24, that Adam, from first to last, was a 
mortal being, and therefore, did not have immortali- 
ty, or eternal life in him at first. It really devolves 
upon those who teach that Adam had an eternal life 
within, and would have lived forever, if he had not 
sinned, to prove their assertion, and not upon me to 
prove a negative. Yet the negative is very easily 
established. Let us consider it a moment. The tree 
of life, laden with life-giving fruit, was in the gar- 
den before man's offence, and the Scripture tells us 
that God gave him permission to eat of it, but it 
seems Adam had not eaten of it up to the time God 
drove him from the garden, as is shown by the words 
of the Almighty. Gen. 3 : 22,—" Lest he put forth 
his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat 
and live forever." This was the only tree in the 
garden, the fruit of which would impart eternal life ; 



236 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

but it had not sufficient attraction for man to cause 
him to eat of its fruit, before his transgression. And 
did not Omniscience know that fact ? Most certainly ; 
and consequently knew, that the life-giving fruit was 
safe until the man had learned to distinguish between 
good and evil. It won't answer for the special plead- 
er to reply : Why, man had been eating of that tree 
all along up to the time of his fall, and that was 
what kept him from decay. For that was not the 
kind of food, which sustains life simply from day to 
day ; but was that sole and special kind which, when 
once partaken of, gives everlasting life. Therefore, 
Jesus says, " He that belie veth on me hath everlast- 
ing life> I am the bread of life. Your fathers did 
eat the manna in the wilderness and are dead. This 
is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a 
man may eat thereof and not die. I am the living 
bread which came down out of heaven ; if any man 
eat of this bread, he shall live forever ; yea, and the 
bread which I will give is my flesh, for the life of 
the world." — John 6 : 47-51. "For God so loved the 
world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that 
whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but 
have everlasting life.'' 

In Jesus we find the tree of life ; and the way to 
the tree of life is the truth. Man comes to Jesus 
through the gospel, the truth, the knowledge of 
which God kept from man, until the first advent of 
the Lord Jesus Christ; although righteous men, the 
prophets, and the angels desired to look into it, and 
to understand how it was that the seed of the woman 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 237 



would ever bruise the adversary's head. Thus by 
withholding the knowledge of the plan of salvation 
from man until the time appointed according to God's 
infinite wisdom, the way to eternal life, that is, the 
tree, was strictly guarded. Even in the time of 
Jesus, he said to his disciples, " There are many 
things I would say unto you, but ye cannot bear them 
now." In fact, we know that during the entire time 
that Jesus was with them before his crucifixion, those 
disciples only had a natural idea of Jesus' mission, 
although he declared to them, " I am the way, the 
truth, and the life ; and no man come th to the Father 
but by me." 

I have already shown from the Scriptures, that 
God's plan embraced both the creation and salvation 
of man ; and that there were not two plans — first, 
that of man's creation, and then, that of his salva- 
tion. And this we should not forget ; for it very 
much aids us in coming to the truths of the gospel. 
When we view both the creation and salvation of 
man embraced in the one great plan of God, and 
also remember that God is loving, merciful and true, 
we ask, how could Adam refrain from eating of the 
forbidden fruit if this was a part of God's plan ? 
And when we read that Jesus was a lamb slain from 
the foundation of the world, and that God told Eve 
that her seed should bruise the serpent's, (Satan's,) 
head ; we are forced to conclude that Adam and Eve 
were instruments in God's hands for effecting his 
great and glorious plan. Jesus tells us that offences 
must come, but woe unto him by whom the offence 



238 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



cometh ; and Paul tells us that one vessel is appoint- 
ed to honor, and another to dishonor ; and that God 
has a right to so appoint. And the enlightened Chris- 
tian says, — " Yes, that is correct ; God has made every 
body and every thing, and owns us all, and has a 
right to do with us as he sees fit. But he is both 
merciful and loving, and I will trust him, although 
his ways are beyond my comprehension at present." 

I am satisfied from examining the Scriptures care- 
fully, that Adam at first only had temporal life ; and 
of course, after his transgression he had nothing 
more ; and consequently his descendants have noth- 
ing more. But whether Adam's real existence ter- 
minated with the death of the body is another ques- 
tion ; and of course, the question is the same in re- 
gard to his descendants. Yet it does not follow, that 
because a man's existence does not terminate with 
the death of the body, it may not terminate at some 
future time. I will now show from the Scriptures, 
that man can only have, or obtain eternal life through 
the Lord Jesus Christ. 

" He that belie veth on the Son, hath eternal life ; 
but he that belie veth not the Son, shall not see life, 
but the wrath of God abideth in him. And as 
Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even 
so must the Son of man be lifted up ; that whosoever 
believeth in him, (or, believeth, may in him), may 
have everlasting life. For God so loved the world, 
that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever 
believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal 
life."— John 3 : 36, 14-16. For as the Father has 



r 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 239 



life in himself, even so gave he to the Son to have 
life in himself. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the 
hour cometh, and now is, when the dead shall hear 
the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear 
shall live. For as the Father raise th the dead, and 
quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom 
he will," John 5 : 25, 26, 21. Jesus said unto them, 
" I am the bread of life. For the bread of God is 
that which cometh down out of heaven, and giveth 
life unto the world," John 6 : 35, 33. " I am the 
living bread which came down out of heaven ; if any 
man eat of this bread, he shall live forever ; yea, and 
the bread which I will give, is my flesh, for the life 
of the world," verse 51. Please notice, Jesus says 
that he gives his flesh for the eternal life of the 
world, not simply for the life of a part of it, or for 
the life of the elect. 

" And the witness is this, that God gave unto us 
eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath 
the Son, hath the life. He that hath not the Son of 
God, hath not the life. 

" These things have I written unto you, that ye 
may know that ye have eternal life, unto you that 
believe on the name of the Son of God," 1 John 5 : 
11-13. 

And later, when Jesus was about leaving the world 
to return to the Father from whence he came, and 
was preparing his disciples for his departure from 
them, he said to Thomas, " I am the way, and the 
truth, and the life ; no one cometh to the Father, 
but by me," John 14 : 6. 



240 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



If man naturally has in himself eternal life, why 
does Jesus tell us so frequently that we can only ob- 
tain it from and through him ? And that the term 
eternal life includes the privilege and power to live 
forever, is shown by the following words of Jesus in 
John 6 : 51, — " If any man eat of this bread he shall 
live forever." 

I want the reader to remember that I plainly assert 
that man has not in himself eternal life, or ceaseless 
existence. I wish to be clearly understood upon this 
point. And it is really astonishing that theologians 
have so long been deceived, and deceived others upon 
this question. Yet, when from one's very childhood, 
a person is taught something to which there is one 
common assent, both by the good and the great, from 
respect for the opinion of those whom he esteems to 
be much better and wiser than himself, he often ac- 
quiesces in what he has heard, Avithout question, or 
examination. 

With these remarks, I call attention to the fact 
that God said the result to man would be the same, 
if he ate of the tree of life, as Jesus said it will be, 
if he eats of the bread which come down from 
heaven, viz., himself. In Gen. 3 : 22, we read, "And 
now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the 
tree of life, and eat, and live forever." And in 
John, 6 : 51, — " I am the living bread which came 
down out of heaven ; if any man eat of this bread, 
he shall live forever." Please notice that in both 
cases it is said, that a man shall " live forever." 
Now, if they can, let some theologian tell me how a 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



241 



man will ever live forever without eating of that 
bread. We know that Adam did not have eternal 
life in him, when God thrust him from the garden to 
prevent his acquiring it ; and consequently, he died. 
And now, where is the real Christian who will dare 
tell me that Adam would ever rise from the dead, if 
Christ had not died and risen again, and thus be- 
came the first fruits of the resurrection? In Christ 
is the resurrection, that is, the power to raise from 
the dead. In fact, so positive was Paul on the point, 
that no one would ever awake from death but through 
Christ, he says, " If Christ hath not been raised, 
your faith is vain ; ye are yet in your sins. Then 
they also which are fallen asleep in Christ have per- 
ished." Please notice the word also in the sentence ; 
as that signifies that the saints had shared the same 
fate as all others, if Christ had not risen ; and that 
the Christian's faith was vain; and consequently 
that the wicked had perished the same as the saints 
had. Now it is nonsense to contend that Paul in- 
tended to teach that if Christ had not risen, the 
saints of the primitive church who believed in, and 
loved, and obeyed the Father, as well as the Son, had 
sunk down to Gehenna. Therefore, Paul intended 
to teach, that if the Christian faith was false, then 
even the pious and the best would always sleep the 
sleep of death. From this saying of Paul, we get 
quite a correct idea of what perish means, when it 
relates to the future and spiritual condition of man, 
or simply to his spiritual condition at any time. It 
does not mean suffering eternally in hell, as is gen- 



242 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



erally supposed ; although the term perishing may 
be correctly used to signify that a person who re- 
jects the gospel, is approaching hell, as in 2 Cor. 2 : 
15, when Paul says, " For we are a sweet savor of 
Christ unto God, in them who are being saved, and 
in them who are perishing." The word perish would 
express the same in this connection as the words, are 
perishing, if a person would keep it in the present 
tense where it belongs, and not give it a future sig- 
nification. And now notice what follows. " To the 
one a savor from death unto death ; to the other, a 
savor from life unto life." That is, the gospel, or 
the power of the gospel, transfers, or will do so, the 
sinner from the first death to the second death ; and 
also transfers the Christian from this life to eternal 
life. All sinners are perishing, because they have 
not spiritual life ; and they have not spiritual life, 
because they are not in Christ ; or, as John express- 
es it, " Have not Christ." For he tells us, that who- 
ever has Christ, has life ; and he that has not Christ, 
has not life ; and here John most certainly means 
eternal life. And Jesus tells us that the gospel is 
spirit and life to them that believe. " My words are 
spirit, and my words are life," says Jesus. And then 
he says, "I am the resurrection, and the life." And 
what is this but eternal life ? That eternal life is 
here meant, plainly appears from Jesus' words, when 
he says, " God so loved the world, that he gave his 
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, 
should not perish but have eternal life." I have al- 
ready shown from Paul's language what perish 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 243 



means ; and it means the same here, and therefore, I 
need not comment upon it. 

But in this connection, I must refer again to Paul. 
Now mark that he has said that all men have sinned, 
and come short of the glory of God, so there is no 
exception. But in his day there was, and had been 
for a long time, those who had sinned under the law, 
the Jews, and also those who had sinned without the 
law, or not under the law, the Gentiles. And of the 
latter he says, Romans 2 : 12, that they shall perish 
without law. But notice, that in 5 : 12, he tells us 
that sin is not imputed where there is no law, as was 
the case between Adam and Moses ; therefore, can 
perish in this case signify any thing but natural, or 
temporal death ? For certainly, the penalty of the 
second death will not be inflicted upon them who 
have never known the law or the gospel, and to 
whom their sins have not been imputed. And why 
should God distinguish in favor of them living before 
the law was given, and against them living since the 
law was given who have never heard of either the 
Mosaic law, or of the gospel ? Why should sin be 
imputed to persons living since Moses' day who have 
been ignorant of the law, any more than to them liv- 
ing before his time ? Both were equally ignorant of 
the law. What good, or evil can either the law or 
the gospel do a man who knows nothing of them ? 
Then why should he be brought under condemnation 
by either ? As no man can be benefited by the gos- 
pel until he knows of it, why should he be injured 
by it during- his ignorance ? Condemning a man to 



244 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the " second death " under such circumstances is not 
in keeping either with the justice or love of God. 
Neither is such a theory taught by either the Saviour, 
or by his apostles. But it is he who hears and dis- 
obeys the gospel, who is perishing and exposing him- 
self to the second death. 

Paul tells us that God is no respecter of persons ; 
that is, He does not in the gospel distinguish between 
one nation and another, nor between individuals of 
one generation and those of another , and as Jesus 
tells us that the Jews would not have been condemned 
if they had not rejected both his teachings and his 
works, how can God in keeping with his infinite wis- 
dom, justice and truth, condemn them to an eternal 
hell, who never heard the gospel while they tarried 
here on the earth ? Does God now distinguish be- 
tween Jew and Gentile ? You all say, no. Then 
why do you distinguish ? When Jesus says that the 
Jews would not have had sin, if they had not heard 
the gospel, why do you seek to impute sin to the 
Gentiles who have never heard it ? What consti- 
tutes condemnation? Hear the Saviour. "This is 
the condemnation, that light is come into the world, 
and men loved darkness rather than light because 
their deeds were evil." That light is in the pure 
gospel, (not in a perverted gospel), and borne by 
the gospel. It is gospel truth that bears both light 
and life ; and in no other way is it borne to man. 
Neither is the imputation of sin and final condemna- 
tion brought to him in any other manner than by re- 
jecting, or disobeying the preached gospel, either 
oral, or written. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



245 



The theory that the Spirit of God is abroad in the 
world, silently, and without the instrumentality of 
man, teaching man and enlightening him to that de- 
gree that his sins are imputed, and that he will thus 
be judged by the gospel without having heard it, (or 
" without a preacher"), is flatly contradicted by the 
teachings of the Lord Jesus, by his directions to his 
apostles to preach the gospel to the whole creation, 
and by the missionary effort of the church to preach 
the gospel to those who have never heard it. If 
God's Spirit is preaching the gospel, why does the 
church send missionaries to the heathen ? 

Brethren, the pure gospel honors and glorifies 
God ; but an adulterated gospel dishonors our Crea- 
tor. You may tell me, that a certain man is a very 
intelligent, humane and merciful gentleman, and an 
affectionate parent, but when I see him, day after 
day, abusing his animals, and also scourging his chil- 
dren for not doing what he has not required them to 
do, or even mentioned to them, I conclude that you are 
very much mistaken in your estimate of the man. 
And can you make that man's children believe that 
he is a loving and truly affectionate father ? No. 
Neither can we make men believe our heavenly 
Father is loving, merciful, just and true, although 
we tell them He is, if we so construe his gospel as to 
make it represent him as being unjust and unmerci- 
ful. It is the true gospel of the Lord Jesus and his 
life, and the lives of true Christians which correctly 
represent God to the world. Thus Jesus said, 
" AVhile I am in the world, T am the light of the 



246 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



world" ; and also said to his disciples, " Ye are the 
light of the world." And they succeeded Jesus as the 
light of the world, because Jesus was in them, as the 
Father was in him, while he tarried here in the flesh — as 
he said — " The Father in me, and I in you." Thus, the 
more of God's nature we have, the more light we 
have ; and of course, the more we have, the more we 
reflect. 

I have already said that Rom. 11, and Peter's lan- 
guage regarding Christ's preaching the gospel to the 
spirits in prison constitute the key to a large amount 
of gospel truth; and I have already commented 
upon them in connection with James' words in Acts, 
15 : 14-18, and also Paul's declaration, that sin is 
not imputed where there is no law, as there is no 
transgression where there is no law, and upon his 
further teaching, that from Adam to Moses the people 
Ave re without law. And I would now remind the 
reader that the original word rendered fall in Rom. 
11 : 11, signifies to fall to rise no more, as to be slain, 
or fall in battle, when Paul asks concerning the Isra- 
elites : "I say then, Have they stumbled that they 
should fall ? " while in verses 11 and 12, the original 
word rendered fall in the phrases, " Through their 
fall," and also, " The fall of them," is the same as is 
rendered offence in chapter 5 : 15, 17, 18, and may 
very properly be rendered lapse ; and thus by the 
fall of Israel, he means only such a fall, or lapse, as 
might be recovered from. 

Thus we see that Paul intended to say, that Israel 
had not fallen to rise no more, which fully harmo- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 247 



nizes with his final conclusion, " And so all Israel 
shall be saved," verse 26 ; also verse 32, u For God 
hath concluded them all in unbelief," (Greek, or shut 
them all up under unbelief), that he might have mer- 
cy upon all." Now whether the last all signifies all 
the descendants of Jacob, or all mankind of every 
generation, I leave the reader to decide. But I can- 
not believe otherwise than that all the offspring of 
Jacob are included in both verse 26 and 32. I hope 
the reader will here carefully review chapter 11 and 
my comments upon it. See page 7. 

In Rom. 2 : 4-11, we read: "Or despisest thou 
the riches of Ms goodness and forbearance and long- 
suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God 
leadeth thee to repentance ? but after thy hardness 
and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath 
in the day of wrath, and revelation of the righteous 
judgment of God, who will render to every man ac- 
cording to his works ; to them, that by patience in 
well doing, seek for glory and incorruption, eternal 
life ; but unto them that are factious and obey not 
the truth, but obey unrighteousness, shall be wrath 
and indignation, tribulation and anguish, upon every 
soul of man that worketh evil, of the Jew first, and 
also to the Greek : for there is no respect of persons 
with God." And in Acts 10 : 34 and 1 Peter 1 : 17, 
Peter also tells us that God is no respecter of per- 
sons. Said he, " Of a truth I perceive that God is 
no respecter of persons ; but in every nation, he that 
feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepta- 
ble to him. And if ye call on him as Father, who 



248 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



without respect of persons juclgeth according to each 
man's works," &c, &c. The remark of Peter in 
Acts was addressed to Cornelius and his friends, and 
directly confirms the assertion of Paul, that God 
makes no distinction between Jews and Gentiles in 
respect to the blessings of the gospel, save that they 
were first presented to the Jews ; and notice care- 
fully, so are they first subjected to punishment for 
evil doing. Please read and digest well the entire 
quotations from Paul and Peter ; and allow me to 
say that the truths uttered by those two eminent 
apostles of the Lord Jesus, when comprehended, are 
far more valuable to him who obeys the gospel, than 
the richest treasures of earth. 

But especially remember that they both teach that 
God makes no distinction between Jew and. Gentile 
in regard to rewards and punishments, and all the 
benefits of the gospel, except that the Jew comes 
first, both with them who accept, and them who re- 
ject, in point of time. 

At this point the reader is requested to banish 
from his memory all religious teachings he cannot 
base upon the gospel, and then answer the following 
questions. 

Do the words, "live forever," signify the same in 
John 6 : 51, when used by Jesus, as when used by 
the Father, as found in Gen. 3 : 22 ? 

Did Adam eat of the tree of life either before, or 
after his fall ? 

If Adam ate of the tree of life before his fall, how 
could he die any more than if he had eaten of it 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



249 



after his transgression? Or, in other words, why 
did he not live forever ? Could the fruit of the tree 
of life impart eternal life unto Adam after his trans- 
gression, when it could not do it before such trans- 
gression ? 

Was eternal life a part of man before Adam's 
transgression, or was it not ? 

Can a person, either in this life, or in the next, 
believe the gospel without hearing it ? 

Is it not the gospel alone which teaches us the 
plan of salvation? 

Can a man in this life, or in the spirit world, either 
believe in, or reject Christ before he has heard of 
him ? 

Was the gospel preached on the earth before Christ 
came ? 

Does the term, "spirits in prison," in 1 Peter 3 : 
19, signify the same as "The dead," in chapter 4 : 5, 
6, except that the latter embraces a larger number 
than the former? 

Did Christ preach the gospel to the spirits in pris- 
on, or did Noah ? 

If it was necessary that the gospel should be 
preached to the dead who lived in Noah's day, why 
was it not equally as necessary that it should be 
preached to all who had died before Christ's time ? 

And if it was necessary for the gospel to be 
preached to them who died before Christ's day, is it 
not equally so for them who have died since, without 
ever having heard the gospel ? 

Is it not equally as easy for God to have the gos- 



250 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

pel preached to people in the spirit world, as to them 
living in the body ? And is there anything in the 
Scriptures teaching that it is not done ? 

Does not verse 6, chapter 4 of 1 Peter* lead ns to 
believe that the gospel is preached to the dead, who 
have never heard it while in the body ? 

Does not Paul plainly teach in Rom. 11, that all 
Israel will be saved ? And does not all Israel em- 
brace the Jews? 

And as the Scriptures teach us, as we have just 
seen, that God makes no distinction between the 
Jews and the Gentiles, under the gospel dispensa- 
tion, except in point of time, why will not all the 
Gentiles be finally saved, as well as all the Hebrews ? 

In Rom. 4 : 8, we read, " Blessed is the man to 
whom the Lord will not impute sins ;" and in 5 : 13, 
" For until the law, sin was in the world ; " but sin 
is not imputed where there is no law ; and as there 
was no law from Adam to Moses, why will not all 
men living during that period of 2500 years, be 
saved ? 

And if all living during such period of 2500 
years are saved, (not having their sins imputed to 
them), are we who live under the gospel dispensa- 
tion as favorably situated as they, if we are con- 
stantly exposed to an eternal hell by our sins being 
imputed to us, if the much greater part of our num- 
ber go to hell, and so few to heaven ? 

And if all Israel, (all of Jacob's descendants,) are 
to be finally saved, and if sins were not imputed 
from Adam till Moses' time, is not the plan which re- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



251 



suits in sending the great mass of the Gentiles to an 
eternal hell, the device of the devil and man, instead 
of that of a just, loving and merciful God ? 

And as the true gospel is the exponent of God's 
love to man, and is thus called " good tidings," has 
not Satan invented such a device, in order to render 
that gospel as hateful and as obnoxious to man as 
possible, and thereby misrepresent the nature, and 
defame the character of its infinite Author, and thus 
transform the gospel into bad tidings ? 

I leave the foregoing questions for the reader's 
consideration, and for him to answer. And I will 
remind him, that in the vast number of religious 
creeds there must be a vast amount of false doctrine, 
or they would not differ so greatly. And the framers 
of each one seem to have lost sight of some one of 
God's principal attributes. One seems to have lost 
sight of his justice ; another, of his love and mercy; 
another, of his wisdom ; and many authors of creeds 
have never seen that God was able to perform his 
own will ; while very many were far from perceiving 
either his love, or his ability to accomplish what his 
infinite lo\e dictated. It is a pity that men cannot 
remember that with God all things are possible, and 
that God is love itself. 

And it is also to be regretted, that so many trans- 
lators of the New Testament, have been so blinded, 
by their own religious views, and their judgments so 
warped, that they have failed to give us a correct 
translation of certain very important portions of the 
gospel. In such instances one Greek scholar with 



252 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



an unbiased mind would have given us a more relia- 
ble one. In sucli instances, the translators have given 
words in the original a forced meaning to make them 
convey an idea which tended to establish what they 
regarded as a positively correct doctrinal principle. 

And with no other words have the translators 
taken so great liberty as with the words accop and 
xpif w ; and that, to make them favor and confirm 
views which they thought to be correct. And I hope 
that God will suffer the words of Paul to the Athe- 
nians to apply to them, — " The times of ignorance 
therefore, God overlooked." Be that as it may, I 
believe that God now calls upon his servants to pre- 
sent to mankind the unadulterated truth to the best 
of their ability, and leave the results to their om- 
niscient Author and owner ; for as I have already re- 
marked, all results are his, not ours. 

The word xptvco signifies to judge, to try, to exam- 
ine ; and with the preposition xara prefixed, making 
xaraxptvco, signifies to condemn, and sometimes, to 
judge. 

And to show the abuse of the word xptvco, and the 
imposition practiced upon man by such abuse, I now 
contrast some verses of King James' translation with 
those of the revised edition of the Testament. 



King James' Version. 
John 3. 

17 For God sent not his Son 
into the world to condemn the 
world ; but that the world 
through him might be saved. 

18 He that believeth on him is 
not condemned ; but he that be- 



Revised Version. 
John 3. 

17 For God sent not the Son 
into the world to judge the 
world ; but that the world should 
be saved through him. 

18 He that believeth on him, 
is not judged ; he that believeth 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



253 



lieveth not is condemned already, 
because he hath not believed in 
the name of the only begotten 
Son of God. 

19 And this is the condemna- 
tion, that light is come into the 
world, and men loved darkness 
rather than light, because their 
deeds were evil. 

John 5. 

24 Verily, verily, I say unto 
you, He that heareth my word, 
and believeth on him that sent 
me, hath everlasting life, and 
shall not come into condemna- 
tion; but is passed from death 
unto life. 

28 Marvel not at this : for the 
hour is coming, in the which all 
that are in the graves shall hear 
his voice, 

29 And shall come forth ; they 
that have done good, unto the 
resurrection of life; and they 
that have done evil, unto the 
resurrection of damnation. 



2 Thess. 2. 
11 And for this cause 



God 



not has been judged already, be- 
cause he hath not believed on 
the name of the only begotten 
Son of God. 

19 And this is the judgment, 
that the light has come into the 
world, and men loved the dark- 
ness rather than the light; for 
their works were evil. 

John 5. 

24 Verily, verily, I say unto 
you, He that heareth my word, 
and believeth him that sent me, 
hath eternal life, and cometh 
not into judgment, but hath 
passed out of death into life. 

28 Marvel not at this, for the 
hour cometh, in which all that 
are in the tombs shall hear his 
voice, 

29 And shall come forth ; they 
that have done good unto the 
resurrection of life; and they 
that have done ill unto the res- 
urrection of judgment. 

2 Thess. 2. 

11, 12. And for this cause, God 
sent them a working of error, 
that they should believe a lie: 
that they all might be judged, 
who believed not the truth, but 
had pleasure in unrighteousness. 



shall send them strong delusion, 
that they should believe a lie; 

12 That they all might be 
damned who believed not the 
truth, but had pleasure in un- 
righteousness. 

I now ask which translation is most in keeping 
with God's nature, the first, or last ? The reader 
should quickly perceive that there is an exceedingly 
great difference between being judged, (or as we 
usually call it, tried), and being condemned; and a 
far greater difference between being judged, and 
being damned. For when a person is tried, or 
judged, lie may be acquitted, or he may be convicted, 
or condemned. 



254 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Please notice the very remarkable difference be- 
tween the renderings of John 5 : 29. In the old 
translation it says, that they who have done evil are 
simply raised to be damned; and in the last, it says, 
that they are raised to be judged, or to be tried — that 
is, the wicked. In Matt. 25 : 31-46, we don't read 
all who were tried, were condemed — part were ac- 
quitted. I don't think any one will deny that a 
judgment, or trial is therein described, and that Jesus 
is the judge. 

Let the reader also notice that the difference be- 
tween the two translations of the 25th verse of the 
same chapter is about as great as that of the 29th. 
The old translation tells us, that the believer in Christ 
shall not come into condemnation, and the last tells 
us that he shall not come into judgment. And in 
both cases, the last translation of the two verses is 
absolutely correct, and the first is equally as errone- 
ous. In both cases the Greek word is zpcocc;, from 
xpcvco, and signifies judgment, or trial. Has it ever 
occurred to the reader, that there was a third party 
at that trial ; or rather, that there will be ? Please 
consider the language, "Inasmuch, as ye have, or 
have not done it to one of the least of these my 
brethren," &c, &c. Those brethren will not then 
be on trial, for they are true believers in the Lord 
Jesus. 

The Protestant ministry and writers have often 
expressed their gratification that the Bible with its 
important truths was locked up in two dead lan- 
guages, and was thus guarded, and in a great meas- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



255 



ure protected against those mutilations and corrup- 
tions which would have otherwise occurred during 
the acrimonious religious controversies which have 
taken place during the past eighteen hundred years. 
This preservation of the original Scriptures is doubt- 
less a blessing, but like many others, it has been 
abused by the classical scholars of the different re- 
ligious sects giving to the world a partially colored 
translation, which is the natural production of their 
own religious and sectarian training ; and this is 
especially the case in regard to the New Testament ; 
and it is to some of the errors in the translation of 
the latter that I call the reader's attention. 

We will first notice the translation of the Greek 
word auov as generally given in the Testament, and 
with which the most remarkable liberty has been 
taken ; and a liberty, I think, amounting to an abuse. 
Auov primarily signifies an age, a man's life time, along 
period of time, indefinite duration ; and secondly, 
eternity. And I will here remark, that from this 
word is derived auovcoz, signifying of long duration, 
lasting ; and sometimes everlasting, perpetual. As 
auov is a noun of time, so is its derivative auovtoq, 
an adjective expressing time, and not place ; and yet 
we find auov in both King James' translation, and 
the revised edition, translated world. But in the 
latter edition where the word is translated world in 
the text, it is generally rendered age in the margin. 
For instance, when you find end of the world in the 
text, you will find " consummation of the age " in 
the margin. But it is quite evident that the late 



256 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



translators were in an awkward dilemma in regard to 
this word, which I will explain. King James' trans- 
lators were very thoroughly confirmed in certain re- 
ligious dogmas, and believing that those dogmas were 
correct, they translated in conformity thereto. And 
it is quite apparent that they found this word accop 
the most difficult word in the whole Testament to 
dispose of in conformity with their creed. It was 
really more difficult than it would be for a mechanic 
to make a joint with a circle and a rectangle, for a 
tangent does touch a circle, but with all their ingenu- 
ity and learning, they could not make this word 
auov even touch their creed. So they virtually threw 
it away, and practically substituted xoofio^ in its place 
which is correctly translated world, although its pri- 
mary meaning is order, natural order, as of the uni- 
verse. And thus to the unlearned they represented 
Jesus and the apostles as using one word when they 
used another, and consequently, as expressing one 
idea when they expressed another ; and indeed it 
could not be otherwise, as words convey ideas, and 
the two words are far from being synonyms. 

The late translators evidently met with the same 
difficulty as did the former ; that is, their creeds and 
auov would not touch. But they acted more honor- 
ably than the former, and have generally given the 
true meaning of the word in the margin, but not al- 
ways. 

In the Greek text the word auov is found over 
ninety times, and in the old edition of the Testament 
it is translated age in only four instances ; and it 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY, 



257 



very much seems as if those were cases of compul- 
sion, in order to make some sense, as "world " would 
not serve that purpose. See Eph. 2:7, 3, 5, 21; 
Col. 1 : 26. 

But it seems from a critical examination, that King 
James' translators studiously and perseveringly en- 
deavored to hide from human gaze, the fact that 
auov signified a limited period of time ; as it is very 
difficult to believe, that it was done by what is termed 
chance. 

But that auov does signify a limited period of time, 
I will now show from J esus' own words , and to 
economize space I shall select from the Revised 
Edition, taking generally the marginal rendering of 
auov, which is age, while the reader can easily remem- 
ber, that, instead of age, it is world in King James' 
translation ; and if he has any doubt, let him refer 
to chapter and verse, and see for himself ; and I hope 
the classical scholar will, in all cases, consult the 
Greek text. 

Let us turn to the parable of the tares, Matt. 13 : 
39, 40, where we read : " And the harvest is the end 
of the age, (auov) ; and the reapers are the angels. 
As therefore, the tares are gathered up and burned 
with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age," (auov). 
Again, in the same chapter, in the parable of the net, 
verses 49, 50, " So shall it be at the end of the age, 
(auov) ; the angels shall come forth, and sever the 
wicked from among the righteous," &c. Here Jesus 
speaks of this age having an end ; so the fact is es- 
tablished from Jesus own language that accov ex- 



258 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



presses a period of time that has an end, and is there- 
fore limited. But in verse 40, the correct rendering 
is this, (toutoo), age. But Jesus also speaks of another 
future age, as follows : " And Jesus said unto them, 
The sons of this age (accov) many, and are given in 
marriage ; but they that are accounted worthy to at- 
tain to that age, (cuaov) and the resurrection from 
among the dead, neither marry, nor are given in mar- 
riage." — Luke 20 : 34, 35. Now here Jesus speaks 
of two ages, this, and a future one. Will any one 
contend that a second age can commence before the 
preceding one ends? Then this age has an end. 
And if this age has an end, why should not the next? 
But not only the present age, and the next subse- 
quent age, but also past ages, and future ages are 
frequently mentioned in the Testament ; and this 
word acajv is the word used to express them. And 
thus we read in Col. 1 : 26, (old translation), — "The 
mystery which has been hid from ages," &c, 
(a.tcovo)v). Therefore, it follows that ages had 
passed away before Paul's day ; and if so, they must 
have embraced a limited period of time. And in 
1 Cor. 10 : 11, he says, " Now these things happened 
unto them by way of example ; and they were writ- 
ten for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the 
ages, (to. rely rcov auovtov) are come. And thus 
says that various past ages have ended. Then in 
Eph. 2 : 7, he speaks of future ages, as follows : 
" That in the ages to come he might show the ex- 
ceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in 
Christ Jesus," And in Heb. 9 : 26, — " But now once 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



259 



at the end of the ages," &c. And in various places 
Paul speaks of the ages to come. See Phil. 4 : 20, 
Gal. 1 : 4, Rom. 1 : 25, 1 Tim. 1 : 17. As do also 
Peter, J ohn and Jude, as follows : 44 That in all 
things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, 
whose is the glory and dominion unto (or in), the 
ages of the ages." — 1 Pet. 4 : 11, see 5 : 11. Also 
Jude 25, Rev. 1 : 18; 4 : 9, 10; 22 : 5. 

Perhaps the reader has sometimes asked, 44 If for- 
ever expresses endless duration of time, why did the 
sacred writers use the term, forever and forever ? for 
the repeating of the word could express no more? " 
Well, of course, the repetition was superfluous, but 
the translators were obliged to translate the second 
ouco^ and that gave them two 44 forevers," and con- 
sequently, they have two eternities. For it is quite 
as proper to say eternity upon eternity, as it is to say, 
forever and forever ; and one expression is equally 
as truthful as the other ; and also, equally as foolish. 

In 2 Tim. 1 : 9, and Titus 1 : 2, is found the phrase 
-oo %pova>v atiovcuiv, which in the old version is 
rendered 44 Before the world began ; " but in the new 
version the same is rendered 44 Before times eternal." 
Xow there is nothing in those three Greek words to 
justify either of those renderings; as ^oo means be- 
fore ; yjpovwv means times, and mmmtav^ of long dura- 
tion; and consequently, there was nothing in the phrase 
to be rendered world, as the authors of the late ver- 
siion well knew ; yet they, like their predecessors, 
feared to render cua>wa>v by any other word than 
eternal or everlasting. Thus they rejected the for- 



260 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



mer rendering. But their own rendering is not only 
incorrect, but quite ridiculous, when once analyzed 
by the rule which both they, and their predecessors 
adhered to in constantly rendering cu&Uwc, (Geni- 
tive plural, cuaivtcov), eternal or everlasting. There- 
fore, relating to past time, the word eternal presents 
an idea which leads the finite mind back into a 
boundless abyss, whenever it attempts to follow it ; 
and going on, and on, human thought finds there no 
resting place. And heretofore, man has thought that 
limitless abyss could only be comprehended by Him 
who is infinity itself. But before giving us this so 
profound rendering, " before times eternal,' 1 equiva- 
lent to before eternal time, or before eternity, must 
not those brethren have passed beyond that illimita- 
ble region? Where, Oh, where, could they have 
been ? ! ! Is it lawful, yes, is it possible for those 
dear brethren to tell benighted man something of 
that wonderful region ? Can other people go there ? 
" Before times eternal ! " What wonderful lan- 
guage ! ! Excepting the alphabetical letters, simply 
serving to present the words to the natural vision, is 
there any thing natural, or earthly connected with 
it? 

Now from what cause did such absurd use of words 
arise ? Simply, because the authors of the late ver- 
sion, (as well as those of the former), believed that 
duty required them to always render atcovcaq eter- 
nal or everlasting; fori am quite willing to give 
them the full credit of acting from a sense of duty. 
And why did they think duty required it ? Because 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 261 



of their religious creeds or belief. They believed it 
was absolutely necessary to so render the Greek word 
in order to sustain a certain religious dogma which 
they believed to be true, and to be based upon the 
teachings of Jesus. 

They were all evangelical ! ! The foregoing 
Greek phrase could have easily and correctly been ren- 
dered before tha most ancient times, or as S chaff has it, 
before the ages, or before secular times — ante tem- 
pora secularia, Vulg ; as easily as arf auovo^ from, 
or in the memory of man, or of old ; or ztq, rov 
aiayva, for a long time. Please notice that the for- 
mer is not rendered from eternity, although ano de- 
notes from ; neither is the latter rendered eternally ; 
and I here give the two phrases with their primary 
renderings, as they stand in the Greek Lexicon. 

For the benefit of the English scholar I now give 
the three Greek words, with their meanings as they 
stand in the Greek Lexicon, and which particularly 
express, and relate to eternity and an eternal state. 
A:duuQ, forever, perpetually, eternally ; o.cocoq, per- 
petual, everlasting, constant ; acdcoryq, perpetuity, 
eternity. Will any one say that the writers of the 
Testament were ignorant of these three Greek words ? 
I think not ; for they are used by them in their proper 
place. See Greek text. 

Again if acwv in the singular, means eternity, and 
if et<; tov aecoua means eternally, or forever, in the 
Testament, why do the same writers use the same 
word in the plural, and then repeat it ? For there 
cannot be tAvo eternities, or a double eternity ; for if 



262 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



there were two, then there would, and could not be 
one eternity ; and if there are two eternities, then 
there can be any number of them. See Gal. 1 : 4; 
Phil. 4 : 2; 1 Pet. 4 : 1 ; 5 : 11, Rev. 15 : 7, and vari- 
ous other places. And if the reader will refer to 
the marginal reading of the late version, remember- 
ing that where he there finds age and ages, it is re- 
spectively aioyu and its plural in the Greek text, he 
will find numerous instances of this kind. 

I have already shown from the words of Jesus, 
Matt. 13 ; 39, 40, 49, that this age will have an end ; 
and, of course, when this age ends, the next age com- 
mences.* And from the following language, and 
from various other passages of Scripture, it appears 
that the next age commences with the first resur- 
rection, which is the resurrection of the pure 
and holy. Thus we read, "And Jesus said unto 
them, The sons of this age marry and are given in 
marriage ; but they who are accounted worthy to at- 
tain to that age and the resurrection from among the 
dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage, for 
neither can they die any more ; for they are equal 
unto the angels, and are the sons of God, being the 
sons of the resurrection." — Luke 20 : 34-36. In the 
bid version we find accov rendered world, and thus it 
reads, " this world" and "that world ; " while in the 
original we find oxcovoq tootoo, this age, and accuwc 
exevou, that age, meaning respectively this present 

* In treating upon this subject the reader will please under- 
stand that when the word age is used, it is in place of the Greek 
word uiooy. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



263 



age in which we now live, and the next succeeding 
one. How many ages follow we know not ; but it is 
certain that the apostles speak of ages yet to come. 
Then it follows that if accov expresses limited time, 
so does its derivative adjective ataivioq,. For this 
reason I think it erroneous to render those two 
Greek words as they are rendered in the Testament, 
or to contend that accovioc, always means eternal, or 
that accov always means eternity, or that combined 
with a preposition it means eternally, or forever. 
How long the next age may be, is not so clear, unless 
we can rely upon the expression, " thousand years," 
in Rev. 20 : 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, as meaning literally a 
thousand years. But cannot one readily see that the 
resurrection from among the dead mentioned by the 
Saviour, and the " first resurrection " of Rev. 20, are 
one and the same ? Jesus says that they who are 
found worthy of "that age" cannot die any more — 
death has no power to reach them. And John tells 
us, that " Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the 
first resurrection ; on such the second death hath no 
power — (Gr. authority, control, leave, jurisdiction) 
— they can die no more." And Paul says, 1 Thess. 
4 : 16, " And the dead in Christ shall rise first." 

Therefore, if any one attain to the first resurrec- 
tion, the resurrection from among the dead, he at- 
tains to, and enjoys the life of the next age, the age 
life (Cco7jv auovtov). And as such can die no more, 
that life merges into eternal life, endless life, as a 
truly spiritual life here merges into that of the next 
age. 



264 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



But that class of believers never come into judg- 
ment. They constitute the third party of Matt. 25 : 
31-46, of whom Jesus says, " Inasmuch as ye did it 
unto one of these my brethren, ye did it unto me ; ? * 
although I will not be be positive that there are not 
others in that third party. However, the general re- 
ligious teachings of the day entirely conceal this 
third class from view, and tell us that all men, saint 
and sinner, must appear before the judgment seat of 
Christ to be judged, and that all men will appear 
there together to answer for the deeds done in the 
body, both the good and the evil. 

It is quite remarkable that a Christian must ap- 
pear there with the wicked, the world, and answer 
for sins that have been pardoned long before ; and 
especially, when Paul tells us, 1 Cor. 6 : 2, that the 
saints shall judge the world, and even angels. Says 
he, " Or know ye not that the saints shall judge the 
world? and if the world is judged by you, are you 
unworthy to judge the smallest matters ? Know ye 
not that ye shall judge angels ? " Again, " If we 
examined, (or judged), ourselves, we would not be 
judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened 
by the Lord, that we may not be condemned (or 
judged), with the world."— 1 Cor. 11 : 31, 32. That 
is, when we, the church, or christians, fail to exam- 
ine ourselves and judge our own evil desires and 
acts as we should, and repent of them and abandon 
them, then the Lord now takes us in hand, and now 
judges us himself, and chastises us, (" if we are sons," 
says Paul, "and not bastards." — Heb. 12 : 5-8), that 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 265 



we may not be condemned with the world. There- 
fore God judges the church now, christians, when 
they fail to judge themselves. And this is what 
Peter means, when he says, " For the time is come 
for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if 
it begin first with us, what shall be the end of them 
obeying not the gospel of God ? " — 1 Pet. 4 : 17. 
Thus we see, that in Peter's day, judgment had then 
commenced with christians, and was then going on, 
and thus it has been going on in every generation 
since that day, and will until the bride of Christ is 
complete. Please read from verse 12. Again, is it 
not absurd to contend that the saints are to both 
judge the world, and to be judged with the world at 
the same time ? 

But to me, it seems that Jesus settles this whole 
question, when he says, J ohn 5 : 24, " Verily, verily, 
I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and be- 
lieveth him that sent me, hath eternal life, and Com- 
eth not into judgment, but has passed out of death 
into life." When Jesus says that believers will not 
come into judgment, who can deny it ? And can he 
mean any other than the judgment of the world, 
when Paul and Peter both tell us that the church is 
now being tried? — that the church is now being 
judged ? But notice further, that in the 28th and 
29th verses, Jesus says, " Marvel not at this ; for the 
hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall 
hear his voice, and shall come forth ; they that have 
done good unto the resurrection of life ; and they 
that have done evil unto the resurrection of judg- 
ment." 



266 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Now please notice that here he speaks of two res- 
urrections, that of life, and that of the judgment, or 
trial. It is the resurrection of life, and the resur- 
rection of judgment. In accordance with the relig- 
ious teachings of to-day, one would naturally infer, 
that the two were one resurrection ; but we have 
seen that both Jesus and also the two apostles John 
and Paul teach two resurrections, — the first, and the 
second-; the resurrection from among the dead, and 
the resurrection of the dead. — Luke 20 : 35 ; Rev. 
20 ; Luke 14 : 14 ; 1 Thess. 4 : 18, 17. But Paul 
states it very succinctly when he sa}^s, " For as in 
Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made 
alive. But each in his own order ; Christ the first 
fruits." [And we know that he has risen]. "Then 
they who are Christ's at his coming," (presence, 
Tzapouata), they who are worthy of that age. " Then 
cometh the end." — 1 Cor. 15 : 23, 24, the final judg- 
ment. 

Now the same order is observed from Matt 24 : 
37 to 25 : 46, which one may see, if he will carefully 
notice. From 24 : 37 to 25 : 30 is described the 
presence (jrapouaca) of Christ with the church, and 
his dealings with it ; and from 25 : 30 is described 
Christ's trial of the world, or the trial of the na- 
tions. But to arrive at an intelligent view of this 
matter one must distinguish between the " presence" 
(no.pooaca^) of the Lord and his final coming, and 
also between the 44 end of the age," and the 44 end of 
the world ; " for there is a very great difference, and 
a person, who fails to distinguish one term from the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 267 



other, has every thing in confusion. Therefore, 
for the benefit of the reader, I will give the most im- 
poitant places in the Testament where tzo.oouoco., and 
also auoi> occur in the Greek text, and then the read- 
er can easily substitute presence for coming, and age 
for world, as he reads the English. 

The word -apouota, is found in Matt. 24 : 3, 37, 
39. 1 Thess. 2 : 19. 3 : 13. 4 : 15. 5 : 23. 2 Thess. 
2:1, 8, 9. Jas. 5 : 7, 8. 2 Pet. 1 : 16. 3:4, 12. 1 
John 2 : 28. 

The word auov, is found in Matt. 13 : 22, 39, 40, 
49. 12 : 32. 24 : 3. Mark 10 : 30. 4 : 19. Luke 16 : 
8. 18 : 30. 20 : 34, 35. Rom. 12 : 2. 1 Cor. 1 : 20. 

2 : 6, 8. 3 : 18. 10 : 11. Eph. 1 : 21. 2:7. 3 : 11. 

3 : 21. 1 Tim. 6 : 17. 2 Tim. 4, 9. Titus 2 : 13. 
Heb. 1:2. 9 : 26. 6:5. 

THE PAROTTSIA OF THE LORD. 

In Acts 1 : 10, 11, we read as follows : "And while 
they were looking steadfastly into heaven as he 
went, behold two men stood by them in white ap- 
parel, who also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand 
ye looking into heaven ? " Now please notice the 
following: "This Jesus, who was received up from 
you into heaven, shall so come in like manner, as ye 
beheld him going into heaven." Now these two men, 
"in white apparel," were doubtless two angels who 
were directed to give this testimony to the church of 
the first-born. See Luke 24 : 50-53. 

A person who fails to distinguish between the 
coming of the Lord Jesus to take the saints to him- 



268 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



self, and that of the judgment of the world, may be 
very much confused by such passages as the follow- 
ing : 

" Howbeit when the Son of man cometh, will he 
find the faith on the earth? "—Luke 18 : 8. 

" For this we say unto you by the word of the 
Lord, that we that are alive, that are left until the 
presence, (Tzapouata)^ of the Lord, shall in no wise 
precede them that sleep. For the Lord himself shall 
descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of 
the archangel, and with the trump of God ; and the 
dead in Christ shall rise first ; then we that are alive, 
that are left, shall together with them be caught up 
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air ; and so 
shall we ever be with the Lord." 1 Thess. 4 : 15- 
17. 

The reader may notice that from the foregoing 
words of Jesus, one would infer that there might 
not be any true faith, or true believers on the earth 
at the coming of the Lord, or rather, the presence of 
the Lord. But Paul speaks of such as those remaining 
and being caught away to meet the Lord in the air. 
Then Jesus says, " And as the days of Noah, so shall 
be the presence of the Son of man. For as they 
were in the days before the flood, eating and drink- 
ing, marrying, and being given in marriage, until the 
day Noah entered into the ark, and they knew not, 
until the flood came, and took them all away, so shall 
be the presence of the Son of man. Then shall two 
men be in the field; one is taken, and one is left: 
two women are grinding in the mill ; one is taken, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 269 



and one is left," Matt. 24 : 37-41. Now as Noah 
and his family were the righteous portion of the hu- 
man race, so will the church be at the . time of the 
presence of the Saviour. And as God separated 
Noah and family from the rest of mankind before 
the flood came, and shut them up in the ark, so does 
Jesus separate his true followers from all others at 
the time of his presence, and takes them away from 
the earth, before he deals with the rest of mankind 
according to their merits. 

Please notice that in Gen. 7 : 16, we read that 
" God shut Noah into the ark ; " so, I think we have 
good reason to believe from the comparison made by 
the Saviour, that then Jesus not only takes his true 
followers from the earth, away from the des- 
truction that will follow, but also to those man- 
sions which he mentions when he says, " In my 

Father's house are many mansions; if it were 
not so I would have told you ; I go to prepare 'a 

place for you. And if I go and prepare a place 
for you, I will come again, and will receive you unto 
myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." 
John 14 : 2-4. And Paul, speaking also of the pres- 
ence of Jesus, adds, " And so shall we ever be with the 
Lord." 1 Thess. 4 : 17. And please notice that in 
this and in the preceding verses, Paul includes both 
the living and the departed saints. These are what 
James terms " a kind of first-fruits " of God's creat- 
ures, James 1 : 18, and also of whom John says, 
" Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first 
resurrection. Over these the second death hath no 



270 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



power ; but they shall be priests of God and of 
Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." 
Rev. 20 : 6. But notice, that in verse 5 he says, 
"The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand 
years should be finished." And then commencing 
with verse 7, and reading the remainder of the chap- 
ter, we find a description of the resurrection of the 
remaining dead, and of their judgment. 

Now if there was not a second resurrection, a first 
resurrection would not be mentioned by the evange- 
list. But he positively adds, that the rest of the dead 
shall not live during the thousand years reign of the 
saints with Christ ; and in harmony with all this, 
Paul says, 1 Cor. 15 : 22-24, in treating especially 
of the resurrection, " For as in Adam all die, so also 
in Christ shall all made be alive ; but each in his own 
order ; Christ the first-fruits : then they who are 
Christ's at his coming. Then comeththe end," etc. 
etc. And in verse 26 he adds, "The last enemy 
that shall be abolished is death." And in Rev. 20, 
we read, " and death and Hades were cast into the 
lake of fire." In the Scriptues death is called an en- 
emy, but Hades is not an enemy of man, yet being 
one of the results, or fruits of death, it natually disap- 
pears with it. For when death ceases, there is no 
further use for Hades. But we must not flatter our- 
selves by thinking that Hades and Gehenna are one 
and the same. 

There is yet one difficulty in reconciling the teach- 
ings of our Lord and his apostles respecting the two 
resurrections and also the two future comings, or 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



271 



the presence and the subsequent coming of our bles- 
sed Redeemer , and this arises from an erroneous 
translation, although such rendering would have been 
correct in most cases. Such erroneous rendering is 
found in Matt. 24 : 34, reading as follows : " Verily 
I say unto you, this generation shall not pass away 
till all these things be accomplished," and the par- 
allel verse in Luke 21 ; 32. The Greek word ysvsa 
in this verse, rendered generation, signifies birth, 
generation, stock, race, etc. If we now substitute 
race for generation, the verse reads, " Verily, I say 
unto you, this race shall not pass away till all these 
things be accomplished." What race? The Jewish 
race, of which Jesus was speaking, and to which he 
had been talking so long. For Jesus had just said 
to the Jews, — " For I say unto you, Ye shall not see 
me hereafter, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that com- 
eth in the name of the Lord/' Matt. 23, last verse. 
Now please notice that immediately after, as Jesus 
was leaving the temple, his disciples called his atten- 
tion to the beauty of its construction, and its other 
merits ; and then Jesus told them that there should 
not be left one stone upon another of that magnifi- 
cent structure. Therefore, in the apostles' question, 
" When shall these things be ? " the term, these 
things, may embrace not only the destruction of Je- 
rusalem, but every thing mentioned by the Saviour 
in the latter part of chap. 23. But please remember 
there are three separate questions ; and notice that 
Jesus answers them in their order, and that Jesus is 
now talking to his disciples only. 



272 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



By the term, " these things, 1 ' in the question of 
the apostles, were included the sore afflictions which 
would befall their nation, embracing the destruction 
of Jerusalem ; and the reply to the first question is 
found from the 4th to the 27th verse ; and the entire 
prophecy contained therein has been literally ful- 
filled, as is plainly shown by history. And even up 
to the 29th verse, the coming or presence of the 
Lord is not foretold, and is only mentioned for the 
purpose of warning the disciples against impostors 
and false Christs who would appear. Before the 
final destruction of Jerusalem there were famines, 
earthquakes, most severe wars, false religious teach- 
ers, false Christs, the most relentless persecutions of 
the church, false brethren, the love of many waxing 
cold ; and the gospel was preached in the whole 
world. — See Rom. 10 : 18. And if any person doubts 
it, let him consult Josephus and Tacitus, the first a 
Jewish, and the second a Roman historian, and he 
will soon be convinced. Now the end spoken of in 
verses 13 and 11, is not the end of the age, nor the 
end of the world, but the end of the Jewish nation- 
ality , and I call the attention of scholars to the fact 
that the word zeXo^ is here used, and not the word 
auvreAeca which is used in connection with auov 
as auureleca zoo accovoz. Therefore, when Jesus 
says, and this gospel [these good tidings] shall be 
preached in the whole world, for a testimony unto 
all the nations, and then shall the end come, the end 
of the age is not meant, or even referred to. He was 
then answering the first question. And when J esus 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



273 



says, verse 22, Except those clays had been shortened, 
no flesh would have been saved ; but for the elect's 
sake those days shall be shortened, he refers solely to 
the time consumed in the destruction of Jerusalem 
and to a temporal salvation from death ; and God so 
ordered it that the time consumed in the capture of 
Jerusalem was very much shortened. Indeed, the 
besieged themselves hastened the event by their di- 
visions and mutual slaughters, and by deserting 
their strongholds, where they could never have been 
subdued but by famine alone. Josephus estimates 
the number of Jews who perished during the war over 
1,357,660, besides many of every age and sex who 
were not reckoned. And the same author estimates 
the number carried into captivity at 97,000, — "being 
led away captives into all nations," according to the 
words of the Saviour — "They shall fall by the edge 
of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all 
nations ; and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by 
the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be ful- 
filled. " Luke 21 : 24. And thus we now see Jeru- 
salem, while the day of salvation is extended to us. 
Let us not forget that people, as they have not fallen 
to rise no more ; for in God's own time the veil, 
which hides the Messiah from their view, will be 
taken away. 

Our Lord had directed his beloved followers, the 
elect, to make their escape from Jerusalem when 
they should see it surrounded by the enemy, — but 
ho w could that be when the city was once encom- 
passed? " With God all things are possible." And 



274 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



God provided the means of escape. In the twelfth 
year of Nero, Cestius Gallus came against Jerusalem 
with with a powerful army; but without apparent 
cause, and contrary to all expectation, he raised the 
siege, and departed. Vespasian was appointed to 
succeed Cestius Gallus — prepared to besiege Jerusa- 
lem, and invested it on every side. But the news of 
Nero's death, and other events, held Vespasian and 
his son Titus in suspense. Thus the city was not 
closely besieged until Vespasian became emperor, 
and Titus was appointed commander of the army. 
It was during these incidental delays, that the Chris- 
tians escaped from the city. Titus, having made 
several unsuccessful assaults upon the city, then sur- 
rounded it with an impassable wall, built in three 
days, and strengthened with, forts, thus cutting off 
all egress from the city and supplies from without. 
But I will not dwell upon these circumstances, im- 
portant as they are. I desire especially that the 
reader notice how particular the Saviour was to warn 
his disciples not to expect his presence at that time, 
and also not to listen to any who would then say, 
" Lo, here is the Christ ; or, Here ! Believe it not," 
said he. " Behold, I have told you beforehand. — If, 
therefore, they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in 
the wilderness ; go not forth : Behold, he is in the 
inner chambers; believe it not." And then, that 
they might better distinguish between the siege and 
capture of Jerusalem and his own jwesence, he adds, 
" For as the lightning cometh forth from the east, 
and is seen even unto the west, so shall be the pres- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



275 



ence of the Son of man." The Lord's presence will 
be as snclden and rapid as the motion of light 
through the atmosphere, and very unlike the slow 
approaches of the Romans against Jerusalem. There- 
fore, when Jesus told his disciples so directly, that 
he would not be present at the destruction of Jeru- 
salem, and warned his disciples against allowing any 
person to cause them to believe that he was there, is 
it not passing strange, that many self-styled theolo- 
gians now teach that he was there ? and further- 
more, teach, that his so-called presence at Jerusa- 
lem was his coming which he and his disciples so 
often and so particularly mentioned ? Will not the 
warning of Jesus apply to such teachers ? The only 
difference between the dangerous teachers of that 
day, and those of this, is, that the former said of Je- 
sus, " Lo, he is here ! " and the latter say, " Lo, he 
was there ! " I refer to the teachings, not to the in- 
tentions ; for there are some beloved believers who 
embrace and teach error. — See verses 23-27. Will 
not a person see, that if the coming of the Son of 
man was at the time of Jerusalem's destruction, 
there would be no use for the language of verse 27 ? 
Jesus there told his followers that his coming will be 
a very different event from the overthrow of J erusa- 
lem. The Roman nation would attend to the blot- 
ting out of Jerusalem : but the Lord of Glory will* 
in person, attend to the gathering of his elect to 
himself, that where He is, there they may be also, — not 
simply to provide a way of escape from Jerusalem 
for the elect of that time. Let the reader turn to 



276 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Mark 13, and carefully read, and he will perceive 
that the language of the first 23 verses related en- 
tirely to the fall of Jerusalem, and to events preced- 
ing, and connected with it. And it is the same with 
Luke 21, from verse 5 to 24 inclusive. Please care- 
fully consider both. But in verse 24, Jesus adds, 
" And Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gen- 
tiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." 

Now the reader is through with the destruction of 
Jerusalem. Let us commence where we left off in 
Matt. 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. Commencing with 
verse 29 of Matt. 24, we read, that immediately after, 
(or next in order,) the tribulation of those days, 
" The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not 
give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, 
and the powers of the heavens shall be agitated ; and 
then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in 
heaven ; and then shall all the tribes of the earth 
mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming on 
the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 
And he shall send forth his angels with a great 
sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together 
his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven 
to the other," verses 29-31. See Mark 13 : 24-27. 
But from 25 to 28, Luke 21, the language is some- 
what different, but serves to enable us to better un- 
derstand that of Matthew ; reading, " And there 
shall be signs in sun, moon and stars ; and upon the 
earth distress of nations in perplexity, for the roar- 
ing of the sea and the billows : men fainting for fear, 
and for expectation of the things which are coming 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



277 



on the world ; for the powers of the heavens shall be 
shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man 
coming in a cloud, with power and great glory." 
And now please notice the following words, ad- 
dressed to his disciples by way of encouragement, 
and instruction, ■ — " But when these things begin to 
come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads, because 
}^our redemption (or release) clraweth nigh." This is 
the same release, or redemption mentioned by Paul in 
Rom. 8 : 23, and in Eph. 1 : 14 and 4 : 30 ; and this is 
what Paul means, 1 Thess. 4 : 16-18, when he says," For 
the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a 
shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the 
trumpet of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise 
first ; then we that are alive, that are left, shall to- 
gether with them be caught up in the clouds to meet 
the Lord in the air : and so shall we ever be with 
the Lord." The trumpet of God mentioned here by 
Paul is the same which is mentioned by the Saviour 
in Matt. 24 : 31 ; and in both cases the first resurrec- 
tion, the resurrection from among the dead, and 
Christ gathering his own, both the sleeping and 
those who remain, is intended. But let believers re- 
member, that notwithstanding the signs which shall 
precede the coming, or presence of the Lord, yet He 
tells us that his presence will be manifested sud- 
denly, like the flash of lightning, verse 27 ; and fur- 
ther says, verse 44, " Therefore, be ye also ready, for 
in an hour ye think not, the Son of man cometh. 

The remainder of the chapter contains a warning 
to all believers to be faithful, and thus be fruitful 



278 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

branches of the Lord Jesus, lest we have our portion 
with hypocrites, where there will be wailing and 
gnashing of teeth. The first thirty verses of the 
25th chapter is the continuation of Christ's warning 
to the church to be fruitful, watchful, and never to 
be without an indwelling Saviour, lest at the coming 
of the Bridegroom they have no oil in their vessels, 
their bodies, which Paul tells us are the temple of 
the Holy Spirit, if we are truly the Lord's. God in 
his infinite love and mercy grant, that neither the 
writer nor reader of this may ever hear the words 
addressed to him, — " Verily, I say unto you, I know 
you not," verse 12; or those of verse 30, — "And 
cast ye the unprofitable servant into the outer dark- 
ness : there shall be the weeping and gnashing of 
teeth." 

In John 15 : 1-6, we are shown how believers 
reach the sad condition in which they hear the 
words, "I know you not;" where Jesus says, — " I 
am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. 
Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, He tak- 
eth away. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth 
as a branch, and is withered." Christ is the great 
fountain, and we must draw from him by a faithful 
performance of duty, and by prayer, watchfulness, 
love for the truth, and a strong fight against the 
flesh, the world and Satan. 

JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS. 

Up to verse 31, chap. 25, the Lord only casually 
referred to the world ; but now he speaks of the 



HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



279 



world. The word, But, indicates the change of sub- 
ject. — He is through with his discourse respecting 
the church, and turns to the world, having excluded 
from the marriage supper of the Lamb the foolish 
virgins, and banished from the light of his presence 
the unfaithful servant. With the 31st verse seems 
to commence the judgment of the nations ; and no- 
tice that Christ says all the nations. Therefore, this 
seems to be a general judgment of the world, or a 
portion of that judgment ; for it is for one particular 
offence only ; yet the Lord says all the nations will 
then he gathered before him. But is this a judg- 
ment or trial of individuals as well as of nations? or 
is it a judgment of nations only, in their national 
capacity ? The Scriptures teach us that God has 
already judged, condemned and punished various 
nations. If any one questions it, let him turn to the 
prophets, and both sacred and profane history, and 
read for himself. Did not God judge and punish 
Egypt, Amalek, Amnion, his own people Israel, and 
various other nations ? And if God has already 
judged and punished nations, why may he not do so 
again ? Can any one tell me why such a temporal 
judgment may not as well take place under the 
Christian dispensation, as before ? Are not the Jews 
now suffering the penalty of such a judgment? 
Moreover, if one will read the 14th chapter of Zech- 
ariah, he may see that a judgment is there foretold 
for an offence that has not yet been committed. In 
fact, let the historian tell us, if he can, when any of 
the events took place, which are mentioned in either 
the 12th, 13th, or 14th chapters of Zechariah ? 



280 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Again, it should be noticed that there is no resur- 
rection mentioned in connection with this judgment, 
although such resurrection may have preceded it? 
therefore, it may be simply a judgment of the living 
nations. But notice further, that this is not a trial for 
offences in general, but simply for one offence, which 
fact, as far as my observation extends, seems to have 
escaped the notice of theologians. And Jesus himself 
tells us that offence is the ill treatment of the 
church of Christ, which he terms ill treatment of 
himself — and such was his accusation against Saul, 
or Paul. 

Again, we know that God condemned and pun- 
ished various nations who persecuted natural Israel, 
the descendants of faithful Abraham; and this being 
so, why should he not much more condemn and pun- 
ish those nations who have, or shall persecute the 
church and bride of his only begotten Son, and their 
Saviour, which Jesus declares is equivalent to perse- 
cuting himself, such is his love for the church? But 
if we consider this either a judgment of individuals, 
or of nations, or of both, or of simply the living na- 
tions, or of all nations and individuals that shall 
have existed up to the time of that trial and judg- 
ment, yet the fact still remains, that it is for one spe- 
cific offence, and for that alone, the parties on trial 
are here arraigned. Jesus makes a very marked dis- 
tinction between offences, or sins ; and this distinc- 
tion, our duty to God, and the welfare of our fellow 
men requires us, the church, to observe ; as the 
church is the light and the teacher of the world, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



281 



it is therefore, incumbent upon us to preach the 
truth in its purity, and not to give forth a discordant 
and " uncertain sound." Therefore, when Jesus, 
our great and truly glorious teacher, who was, and 
is yet the way and the truth, makes a distinction, it 
is our duty to attend to it, and not, by disregarding 
such distinction, jumble everything into chaos, and 
thus make proselytes to darkness. For it is really 
true that some religious teachers do now " compass 
both sea and land " to make proselytes to their 
creeds, as well as to Christ ; and when such prose- 
lytes are made, they are in the same chaotic confu- 
sion respecting the truth as themselves. 

Now according to the common rendering of aeco- 
vioc, in both versions, the penalty of the offence 
charged in this judgment, is eternal punishment, 
and also of the same nature as that prepared for the 
devil and his angels, — verses 41, 46. By its teach- 
ings, the so-called evangelical churches, or sects, 
affix the same penalty to all offences ; while, in this 
discourse, God attaches this penalty to but one of- 
fence ; and this sin is the unkind or wrongful treat- 
ment of Christians. 

Now turn to Matt. 10, and there read of Jesus 
sending forth the Twelve, and the reader will find 
that through the entire chapter, Jesus speaks to and 
of his disciples, or followers; saying, in the last 
part of the chapter, " He that receiveth you, re- 
ceiveth me, and he that receiveth me, receiveth him 
that sent me. * * and he that receiveth a right- 
eous man in the name of a righteous man, shall re- 



282 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

ceive a righteous man's reward. And whosoever 
shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a 
cop of cold water only, in the name of a disciple, 
verily, I say unto you, he shall, in no wise, lose his 
reward." Please let this language stand as it reads, 
and not add to it any of man's traditions. Now we 
know that a truly affectionate husband appreciates 
and values more highly favors extended to an absent 
wife in need, than if they were extended to himself. 
So it is with the Lord Jesus ; for the church is his 
espoused bride composed of all the true followers of 
the Lamb of all generations. But Christ will also 
avenge her wrongs ; and thus we perceive that the 
promise of a reward in one case respecting the 
church, tends to prove the certainty of punishment 
for wrongs done her in the other, as taught in 
Matt. 25. 

According to the teachings of Jesus, blasphemy 
against the Holy Spirit is the only offence which 
equals that of the persecution of the church. So 
henious is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit in 
God's sight, that Jesus says it shall not be forgiven, 
either in this age, or in the age to come, the next 
age; Matt. 12: 31, 32. Here is a specific offence 
mentioned, as there is also in the judgment described 
in Matt. 25. Our " Evangelical " brethren hold the 
offence of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will 
never be forgiven ; and believing that the judgment 
of Matt. 25 teaches the eternal punishment of those 
guilty of the offence therein charged, they hold that 
in that condemnation are included offenders of every 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



283 



class, small and great, although they may have al- 
ways treated Christians with kindness and respect, 
and consequently, they must also go down to an 
eternal hell of darkness and despair. Now let those 
brethren apply the same rule of construction to the 
language of Jesus respecting the sin of blasphemy 
against the Holy Spirit, translating azmv, world, and 
actovtot;, eternal, which they apply to the judgment 
of Matt. 25, and they will plunge themselves and 
every one else into the same eternal hell. For in 
the first case, those brethren would make Jesus tell 
us, that to every offence is attached the same pen- 
alty, eternal punishment, (as they say), as is attach- 
ed to the offence there mentioned. Then why should 
they not say because the offence of blasphemy against 
the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, therefore no 
other offence will be forgiven : Notice, that that 
kind of blasphemy has its penalty, non-forgiveness, 
as injustice' to the church has its penalty; and there- 
fore, one of the two penalties may as easily be ap- 
plied to minor offences as the other, and thus in 
keeping with their theory, the penalty of non-for- 
giveness could be affixed to minor offences. 

Now will any Christian deny the fact that we 
ought to give that construction to Scripture which 
most truly presents the character and attributes of 
our heavenly Father, and especially avoid misrepre- 
senting them or hiding them from human view. And 
such is the will of God ; for He desires to more and 
more clearly manifest himself to us ; but we cannot 
commence obtaining a view of God, until we believe 



284 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that 
seek him. And it is the truth which delineates the 
true character of God, which introduces us to God, 
and enables us, in conjunction with an honest heart 
towards him, to become acquainted with him ; and 
therefore, it is the man who is the most correctly in- 
structed in spiritual things, and has the purest heart, 
that knows the most of God, or best knows God. 
And thus Jesus prays, Sanctify them by thy truth ; 
thy word is truth — not adulterated truth, of which 
we have so much, and which is from Satan. And 
then again, Jesus says, Blessed are the pure in heart, 
for they shall see God. So you perceive the fore- 
going position is established from Jesus' own words. 
For seeing God signifies to know God. 

Now the Scriptures tell us that God is love, and 
Jesus himself tells that God so loVed the world, that 
he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever be- 
lieves on him should not perish, but have eternal 
life. For God sent not his Son into the world to judge 
the world, but that the world through him might 
be saved, John 3 : 16, 17. Ye believers in the Cal- 
vinistic creed, please notice that Jesus says that it 
was because " God so loved the world," not simply 
the elect, that he gave his only begotten Son. And 
the scriptures also tell us, over and over, that God's 
mercy endureth forever, Psa., 136, &c, &c. 

Therefore, having a correct view of God's 
nature, or the view afforded us by the foregoing 
scripture, and a devoted spirit, why should we so con- 
strue the words of Jesus in Matt. 25, as to make the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY". 



285 



penalty inflicted upon one certain class of offenders 
applicable to all other offences ? I think the loving 
character of God teaches ns to strictly limit or con- 
fine the judgment there pronounced to the class of 
offenders there mentioned, just as the penalty for 
blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is strictly confined 
to that class. 

And for the same reasons as given above, I would 
also construe auovtoc, as meaning of long duration, 
or during the age, or during an age, instead of eternal; 
and for the further reason, that auov from which aeoj- 
vioz is derived, primarily means an age, or a long 
period of time, and • not primarily, eternity. And 
also, because the scriptures teach us that there is a 
class who enter upon, and enjoy an age of life and 
glory prior to others who are also at the expiration 
of that age, adjudged worthy of eternal life. See 
Luke, 20 : 35, 36. Rev. 20 : 12-15. 

Let us compare the judgment of Matt. 25 : 31-46 
with that of Rev. 20 : 11-15. In point of time, to my 
mind, there is no apparent difference, although I am 
unable to deny that there is not. For convenience 
in speaking, we will however term the judgment 
described in Matt. 25, as the first, and that of Rev. 
20, as the second, taking them in the order in which 
they stand in the Scriptures. The first only men- 
tions one class of offenders ; the latter includes all 
classes. There is no resurrection mentioned in con- 
nection with the first judgment, while there is in con- 
nection with the second. It is not said that any of 
the dead are on trial at the first judgment, while at 



286 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the second, the dead only are mentioned, as follows : 
And I saw the dead, the great and the small stand- 
ing before the throne : and books were opened ; and 
another book was opened, which is the book of life : 
and the dead were judged out of the things which 
were written in the books, according to their works. 
And the sea gave up the dead which were in it ; and 
death and Hades gave up the dead which were in 
them ; and they were judged every man according to 
their works : The first judgment mentions only na- 
tions, while the second mentions only individuals. 
The first judgment mentions only one offence ; while 
the second evidently includes all kinds of offences, 
for we read that they were judged according to their 
works as recorded in the books. 

Once I considered the language, in Matt. 25 : 37- 
89, of the parties on the right hand as very peculiar 
for Christians to utter, when they say Lord, when 
saw we thee a hungered and fed thee, &c, &c, as 
such language plainly indicates ignorance of the 
teachings of Christ, who frequently and pointedly 
tells us what will be the result to all men, of either 
favors shown to, or wrongs practiced upon his fol- 
lowers; and notice that in verse 46 those on the right 
are simply called the just, (oe dcxacoc) ; that is, 
they had acted kindly and justly towards all men, 
Christians and others, although ignorant of the gos- 
pel. And judging from the language of both them 
on the right and on the left, I think we are justified 
in believing that both were ignorant of the gospel. 
Brother, I request you with your present knowledge 



\ 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



287 



of the teachings of Jesus and the apostles, to say 
whether you would reply to the Savior as either of 
those two parties are represented as doing? With 
your knowledge of the gospel would it not be mock- 
ery and trifling to pretend such ignorance ? But 
taking this view of the condition of the parties on 
trial, both on the right hand and on the left, and tak- 
ing Christ's definition of eternal life, and not men's, 
there is no difficulty in disposing of this question, (if 
your creed don't interfere), in a manner harmoniz- 
ing with the attributes of our heavenly Father, viz., 
love, mercy, wisdom, justice and truth. In John, 17 : 
3, Jesus defines eternal life as follows, — " And this 
is eternal life, that they should know thee, the only 
true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." 
First let us substitute in the last verse of chapter 
25, for eternal life, Jesus' definition of the term 
eternal life, and the verse reads as follows : And 
these shall go away into eternal punishment, but 
the righteous into a knowledge of thee, the only 
true God and Jesus Christ whom thou didst send. 
Then remembering that a^w^coc is the word which 
is translated eternal in this verse, and paraphrasing 
it to correspond with the idea advanced, and using 
the primary meaning of auo^co^^ and the verse 
reads : And these shall go away into a long period, 
or an age of punishment ; but the just into a knowl- 
edge of the only true God and of Jesus Christ whom 
He did send. I desire that every man shall entertain 
that religious belief, that will most glorify God, and 
most benefit himself ; therefore, I do not want him to 



288 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



adopt my views unless they will yield that result. 
But suffer me to ask if those on the right previously 
knew God and Jesus, and his teachings, and thus al- 
ready had eternal life, why does Jesus say of them, 
that they shall then enter upon a knowledge of God, 
and of his Son, which is eternal life ? 

It is every man's duty to study, and to become fa- 
miliar with, and to reflect upon the teachings of 
Jesus and his apostles, and to compare Scripture with 
Scripture. But no man can reflect without thinking ; 
therefore, we are all entitled to the privilege of 
thinking, while we accept the Scriptures as the 
truth, — Romish and Protestant sectarians to the con- 
trary notwithstanding. Furthermore, no man can 
think or reason, while his brain is compressed with an 
iron-clad creed ; and if a man don't want his brain 
so compressed, he must guard against sectarians slip- 
ping first one, and then another, of their iron hoops 
upon his head, and they have many ways of doing it ; 
and although they are unconscious of the fact, they 
also have Satan to aid them in that work, however 
good their intentions may be; in fact, he always' aids 
in every thing that works against the teachings of 
Christ. And do not sectarian creeds divide the 
body of Christ ? Most certainly, they do. But let 
us return to our subject. 

In connection with the idea that those on the right 
then first enter upon a knowledge of God and the 
Lord Jesus, which Jesus says is everlasting life, I will 
call attention to the following passages which teach 
that believing in Jesus immediately gives one eter- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



289 



nal life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, lie that 
heareth my word, and belie vetli him that sent me, 
hath eternal life, and cometh not into judgment, but 
has passed out of death into life, John 5 : 24. Verily, 
verily, I say unto you, he that belie veth on me, hath 
everlasting life, John 6 : 47. I am that bread of 
life, verse 48. The foregoing words are those of 
Jesus. Now we will present some of the beloved 
apostle, John, — He that confesseth the Son hath the 
Father also, 1 John 2 : 23. Whosoever shall confess 
that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him 
and he in Gocl, 4 : 15. And in John 3 : 56, we 
read, He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life. 
But mark that I don't contend, or believe, that sim- 
ply believing on Christ entitles one to a part in the 
first resurrection. Paul fully believed in Christ, and 
yet he tells us that he was striving to attain to the 
first resurrection, the resurrection from among the 
dead. What weak, foolish creatures we believers 
are, that we don't do the same thing ! ! Again, Jesus 
says, For God sent not his Son, into the world, to 
judge the world ; but that the world should be saved 
through him. He that believeth on him is not 
judged; he that believeth not, hath been judged 
already, because he hath not believed on the name 
of the only begotten Son of God. 

Now in John 5 : 24 and 6 : 47, please notice that 
Jesus not only says that whoever believeth on him 
now has eternal life, but further says that such per- 
son does not come into judgment ; and tells us the 
reason is, because such person has already passed 



290 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



from death into life, or out of death into life. And 
Jesus further says in chap. 3, that he that belie veth 
is not judged ; but that he who believeth not is al- 
ready judged, — and tells us what that judgment is, 
viz : that light had come into the world, Jesus being 
that light, and men rejecting that light : and the 
promises that apply to parties who then saw and 
heard Jesus, apply to us more forcibly; for Jesus 
said to Thomas, Blessed are they who believe with- 
out seeing. Therefore, if believers now have eter- 
nal life, why should it be said of them that they first 
enter upon eternal life at this judgment? 

The question now under consideration is, whether 
the parties now judged, that is, in this judgment, 
where they are termed respectively sheep and goats, 
have ever heard the gospel, and not whether they be 
living nations, or dead ones resurrected, or both; 
for we know that many nations and generations 
have passed away without a knowledge of God, or 
of his Son Jesus Christ. Others have passed away 
with some knowledge of God, but not of his Son, 
or of his gospel ; and I submit for consideration, that 
neither the just nor the unjust here called into judg- 
ment had any knowledge of the gospel. They evi- 
dently do not belong to the class who stand without 
and knock at the door saying, Lord, open to us, 
* * * we did eat and drink in thy presence, and 
thou didst teach in our streets, Luke 13 : 25, 26. 
Neither do they belong to the class who say in that 
day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophecy in thy name, and 
in thy name cast out devils, and in thy name do many 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



291 



mighty works? Matt. 7 : 13. Jesus does not say to 
either of the two last parties that they shall go away 
into an age (ma)v), of punishment; but he tells them 
lie never knew them, and to depart from him. These 
people had heard the gospel, and believed, but did 
not obey, and had not the spirit of Christ, and therefore, 
were not his. And are not many professors now des- 
stitute of the same? Are not many even ignorant 
of the new commandment given by the Lord Jesus? 

If we consider this a judgment of individuals, in- 
stead of nations, I would present Cornelius before he 
heard the gospel, as an illustration of the party on 
the right hand. Cornelius, in a restricted sense, 
knew God, although himself a Gentile, and was truly 
a good man, as is strikingly shown by the message 
from heaven, when the angel announced, "Thy pray- 
ers and thine alms, have come up as a memorial be- 
fore God, Acts 10 : 4. Yet he knew nothing of the 
gospel, and consequently, nothing of the Lord Jesus, 
his Redeemer. Xow if Cornelius had died before he 
had had any knowledge of the Saviour, and been found 
on the right hand in the judgment described, would 
he not have naturally answered as those on the right 
are represented as answering? Naturally he would 
not have comprehended Jesus, when he told him 
that he had fed him when he was hungry, visited 
him in prison, etc., etc., although there was a record 
in heaven of his love and beneficence. But would 
either of the twelve apostles who had listened to the 
teachings of Jesus, haA~e replied in this manner? To 
think so, one must imagine that the apostles will 



292 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



have forgotten that Jesus had ever said to them, A 
new commandment I give unto you ; that ye love 
one another, even as I have loved you, that ye also 
love one another, etc., John 13 : 34; 15 : 12-17. 
Also, that he had said, He that receiveth you, receiv- 
eth me — and whoever shall give to drink to one of 
these little ones, a cup of cold water only, in the 
name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in 
no wise lose his reward, Matt. 10 : 41, 42. And 
there are various other teachings of the same tenor, 
including a description of this judgment. And Je- 
sus further tells us that God will avenge his elect. 
" And shall not God avenge his elect who cry unto 
him day and night ? I say unto you he will avenge 
them speedily. Howbeit when the Son of man 
cometh will he find faith on the earth?" Luke 18 ; 7, 
8. And Paul says, "Avenge not yourselves, beloved, 
but give place unto wrath ; for it is written, Ven- 
geance belongeth unto me ; I will recompense, saith 
the Lord," Rom. 12 : 19. See Rev. 6 : 9-11 and 19 : 
10, where we are first told that God will soon avenge 
his servants; and then that he hath avenged, at 
least some of them. 

Really, it is not to be supposed that the apostles, 
on the day of judgment, or at any time, will have 
forgotten the teachings of Jesus, or their own teach- 
ings, so that they will then need to be again taught 
by the Saviour what merits his favor, and what does 
not. Will they then have forgotten the description 
of this very judgment ? For according to the gen- 
eral teachings of the church, Christians especially 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



293 



constitute the right hand party ; and if so, the apos- 
tles will be there, a part of that company ; and we 
have no reason to believe that they will not retain in 
full all their mental faculties. On the contrary, they, 
and all others, who have purified themselves that 
they, like Jesus, might be pure, and "not be ashamed 
before him at his coming," will then " shine forth as 
the sun in the kingdom of their Father," with that 
intellectual brilliancy which characterizes the pure 
and spotless Redeemer of mankind, and act with 
their Redeemer in this judgment, and consti- 
tute the third class of which Jesus speaks, when 
he says to those on his right, " Inasmuch as ye did it 
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it 
unto me," — verse 40. If Jesus only addressed them 
on the left, one might suppose, if there was no other 
Scripture elsewhere to prevent it, that he referred to 
them on the right, when he says, " the least of these 
my brethren." But when Jesus addresses them on 
the right, (ot dcxacoc), the just, and says these my 
brethren, he does not refer to any one of them he 
addresses — neither the idiom of the Greek, or Eng- 
lish language will allow it. Neither will the teach- 
ings of Jesus, or of his apostles suffer such a con- 
struction to be made of the language. In truth, a 
person who comprehends this discourse, commenc- 
ing at verse 3 of chap. 24, and ending with chap. 25, 
and takes the events therein mentioned in their order, 
as Jesus there sets them forth, cannot fail to see, that 
prior to this judgment, the Lord has rewarded and 
punished believers, or Christians according to their 
works. 



294 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY* 



In order to understand this discourse a number of 
things are necessary. First, we should notice Jesus' 
remarks respecting Jerusalem, in the three last verses 
of chap. 23. Secondly, the questions of the disci- 
ples; for Jesus answers them in their order, and in 
the last question, we should substitute presence, 
(izapouatd)^ for coming, and age for world ; so that 
the questions may read, And what shall be the sign 
of thy presence, and of the end of the age? Be- 
cause the term, presence, is used to express the time, 
and the event of Jesus raising the sleeping saints 
with spiritual bodies like his own most glorious body, 
changing "in the twinkling of an eye/' the natural 
bodies of the living saints into like spiritual bodies, 
and catching both away "to meet the Lord in the 
air," and so, from that time, " ever be with the Lord," 
1 Cor. 15 : 51, 52; 1 Thess. 1 : 14-17 ; Phil. 3 : 20, 
21. And age should be substituted for world, be- 
cause the former expresses the time within which 
certain events will be consummated, and, naturally, 
it frequently includes those events in the phrase, 
end, or consummation of the age ; while the phrase, 
"end of the world" expresses not only a longer per- 
iod of time, but also the cessation of every thing 
terrestrial, including time itself, according to, and in 
keeping with the theological parlance and teaching 
of the present time ; or the phrase has within itself, 
and conveys that idea to the mind. And here, I re- 
quest Christian scholars to carefully notice and con- 
sider the actual abuse of the word auov, for by ren- 
dering it world, King James' translators actually sub- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



295 



stitutecl xoafj.0^ in its place, and acted as if they knew 
better what the writers of the New Testament wished 
to say, than the writers themselves. Their own pri- 
vate creed-lexicon effected the mischief, and probably 
caused the authors of the new Version to retain the 
false rendering of accov in the text, while conscience 
made them give the true rendering in the margin. 
Let the readers of the Testament see that they use 
the marginal rendering of the word when they read, 
that they may get the true meaning of what is writ- 
ten. 

Thirdly, the reader should remember that the res- 
urrection of the sleeping saints, and the bodily 
transformation of the living ones, (which, with 
every one, must be preceded by a spiritual one), by 
the Saviour, and their translation to his Father's 
house, in which he tells us "there are many mansions," 
for them who love him, take place previous to the 
general resurrection, and previous to the judgment 
of any class except that class constituting the church 
and body of Christ, our Lord, which is constantly 
taking place. And especially we should bury out of 
sight and thought all our sectarian instruction, and 
particularly sectarian renderings of Greek words. 

If any one desires to exercise his skill in driving 
a camel through a needle's eye, let him endeavor to 
acquire the truth by using one of the lexicons usu- 
ally attached to the Greek Testament ; for their ren- 
derings are in keeping with the views of their sec- 
tarian authors, and other sectarian scholars of their 
generation, and generations preceding them. And 



296 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



let the Roman church remember that to her the 
Protestant church is indebted for a large proportion 
of those false views and entanglements from which 
some Christians are now seeking deliverance. 

Now let us make a summary of this discourse con- 
tained in chapters 24 and 25. Notice that the ex- 
pression " these things " is used in the first question 
of the apostles, and also in the reply of Jesus in 
verse 34. The expression " these things " in the first 
question evidently refers to the destruction of Jeru- 
salem; and the question arises whether the term 
embraces any thing more in the reply of our Lord. 
There would be no question about it, if it were not 
for what is mentioned in verses 29, 30 and 31. Be 
that as it may, when we render ysvsa race, the 
whole difficulty disappears. However, to the 29th 
verse Jesus only teaches, or describes the destruction 
of Jerusalem. In the remainder of the 24th chapter, 
Jesus, after giving the signs of his coming, describes 
his removal of the saints, or rather his taking them 
to himself, to be " forever with the Lord," and his 
dealings with unfaithful believers ; that is, their trial 
and punishment ; but how long their punishment or 
purification will continue, Jesus does not here tell 
us. 

With the 25th chapter commences the parable of 
the ten virgins. Here the church is represented by 
ten virgins, or in other words, ten chaste women. 
The entire ten not only represent Christians, but 
they also represent Christians who are watching for 
Jesus', the bridegroom's coming, or presence. But 



KEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



297 



they are not all in that living spiritual state which 
alone fits one for the presence of the glorious Re- 
deemer, — "to stand before the Son of man, and 
not be ashamed before him at his coming." It may 
be that the five foolish virgins lack true love, with- 
out which Paul tells us we are nothing, although we 
may have extraordinary faith, and understand all 
mysteries, &c, 1 Cor. 18. As a chaste woman in 
scripture always represents the living church of 
Christ, and a vile woman represents a fallen church, 
it is folly to endeavor to make the parable embrace 
any besides believing Christians whatever may be 
their spiritual condition. Furthermore, let believers 
notice that this parable describes only those Chris- 
tians who really believe in, and are watching for the 
return of the Lord Jesus from heaven. For by the 
word bridegroom Jesus certainly represents himself, 
and it is for the bridegroom these virgins watch. 
They really believe in the bridegroom's near coming, 
and thus believing, even the foolish ones make some 
little preparation. But do the mass of Christians 
now even believe in the speedy coming, or rather 
presence, of the Lord Jesus. No ; and furthermore, 
they really care and think so little about it, they 
do not distinguish between his coming to take his 
own watching ones away, and his final coming with 
all his saints and the holy angels to judge the world. 
And judging from years of observation, it seems as 
if the clergy take less interest in the return of the 
Lord Jesus, than do the laity. In fact, a large por- 
tion of the clergy seem to consider the subject be- 



298 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



neath their notice. And we have very strong pre- 
sumptive evidence from their own language and their 
system of preaching, that some of them doubt, and 
others actually disbelieve the doctrine of Jesus' re- 
turn to this earth. Suffer me in brotherly love and 
kindness, and for the good of the body of Christ, 
(of which all true Christians are members, and mem- 
bers one of another), to ask such preachers if they 
really desire, as did the apostles, the immediate re- 
turn of Christ ? Do you really desire his return to- 
day ? this hour ? this minute ? Are you ready " to 
stand before the Son of man?" Are you certain 
that you would not be " ashamed before him at his 
coming," or presence, (jzapouotu?) ? You extol 
the learning, the wisdom, the rhetoric, and the 
preaching of Paul. You descant quite extensively 
upon these points. Very well, if you consider him 
such a model preacher, why don't you endeavor to 
imitate him, by preaching as he preached? Paul 
preached pointedly the coming and presence of the 
Lord Jesus Christ, and so did Peter, John and James. 
Why don't you do the same ? 

Jesus and those apostles taught and especially used 
the coming of the Lord to receive his own to him- 
self, as a powerful, if not the most powerful incen- 
tive, in influencing the church to purify herself, in- 
dividually and collectively, that she might become 
pure, holy, affectionate, and " without spot, or wrink- 
le or any such thing," being perfect and entire, and 
lacking nothing, that she might be truly resplendent 
and glorious in both person and attire, and thus be a 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



299 



becoming bride for her Lord and Redeemer at his 
parousia. Why don't 3^011 pursue the same course? 
Please consider the following questions: — Have you 
discovered a more effective method of preaching the 
gospel than that of the Lord Jesus and his apostles? 
Have you discovered a method of purifying and ex- 
alting the church, superior to theirs? or do you con- 
sider your method as simply an improvement upon 
their method, that is, the method of Jesus; for the 
method of Jesus and the apostles was one and the 
same. Look right down into your thoughts, and see 
how you regard your own method as compared with 
theirs. The apostles received the gospel and their 
methad of preaching it directly from the Lord Jesus. 
Have you thus received either the one, or the other ? 
But hold — are not the teachings of the Lord respect- 
ing his return to this earth for the purposes men- 
tioned in his discourse, a portion of the gospel ? 
Again, do they not constitute a part of the plan of 
salvation ? Every intelligent and candid Christian 
will answer these two questions affirmatively. Then 
a preacher who discards these teachings discards a 
portion of the gospel; and he who denies these 
teachings, denies a portion of the gospel plan. Now 
when two things are alike, you can neither take 
from the one, or add to the other without making 
them unlike. They then differ, or are different. Neith- 
er can I take a part of one thing away and leave it the 
same. So it is with the gospel. Therefore, when a 
portion of the gospel is taken away it is a difTerent 
gospel from what it was at first ; and thus what is 



300 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



termed the gospel scheme, or gospel economy, would 
thus be converted into a different plan from that of 
our heavenly Father's. But what says Paul respect- 
ing those who preach a different gospel from that 
which he preached ? — "I marvel that ye are so quick- 
ly removed from him who called you to the favor of 
Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another ; 
only there are certain ones troubling you, and wish- 
ing to change the gospel of Christ. But though 
we, or an angel from heaven, preach unto you other- 
wise than what we preached unto you, let him be 
anathema. As I have said before, so I now say 
again, if any one preach unto you otherwise from 
what ye received, let him be anathema." — Gal. 1 : 6- 
9. There can be no question in regard to Paul's 
meaning here : and anathema means accursed, or ex- 
cluded from the favor of God. I will say no more 
# upon this point, but leave it for the candid consider- 
ation of religious teachers, and also for the like con- 
sideration of their pupils. 

The Greek word napooaca should be anglicised ; 
and therefore, I shall hereafter use it as an English 
word, llapouaia signifies not only presence, but also 
arrival, being derived from the word Tio.paifMu which 
signifies not only to be present, but also the act of 
coming. Therefore, the reader will do well to re- 
member both significations, that he may comprehend 
the full force of the word, as we have no one word 
which expresses the same. 

The following are the principal passages where 
Tiapouata is found in the Greek text, and in every 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



301 



case it is translated, coming, in the text of both the 
Old and New Version: Matt. 24 : 3, 27, 30, 37, 39. 
1 Thess. 2 : 19. 3 : 13. 4 : 15. 5 : 23. 2 Thess. 2 : 
1, 8. Jas. 5 : 7, 8. 1 Peter 2 : 4. 2 Peter 1 : 16. 3 : 
4, 12. 1 John 2 : 28. 

Again, let the reader notice that the Lord's reply 
to the foolish virgins is, simply, " Verily, I know you 
not." He does not appoint them their portion with 
hypocrites, where there is weeping and gnashing of 
teeth, as we read is the fate of two other classes ; 
see chap. 24 : 51, and chap. 25 : 30. These foolish 
or imprudent Christians, although even expecting 
the Lord's return, yet being unqualified, are rejected 
and excluded from a part in the first resurrection and 
translation, to which Paul says he was striving to 
attain. They also are among those who are left as 
described by Jesus in chap. 24 : 40-43, where he 
says, There shall be two men in the field ; one is tak- 
en, and one is left ; although they rank much higher 
than the vast throng about them. So it was in the 
days of Elijah, there were then good men on the 
earth, but he only was translated. Therefore let us 
not only expect and watch, but also be prepared for 
the parousia of our Lord, lest he say unto us, Verily, 
I know you not. And when we have overcome the 
world, then let us not forget that our two remaining 
foes, the flesh and the devil, yet act in concert 
against us ; and that while Jesus tells us "The spirit 
is willing but the flesh is weak," the apostle also 
tells us, "The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the 
spirit against the flesh," Gal. 5 : 17. And it is only 



302 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



God, or Christ found in us, who can enable the spirit 
to overcome the flesh with its lusts. And to over- 
come this powerful enemy, we have not only to pray, 
but also to fight ; and not only to fight, but to be 
constantly on our guard; that is, to watch carefully 
against our enemy. And not only all these, but we 
must "put on the whole armor of God," or in other 
words, the whole armor which God has furnished 
us through the gospel ; and not only a large part of 
that armor, but every piece of it, or our powerful 
adversaries will reach and wound us, and thus unfit 
us for a part in the first resurrection. And then we 
have got to keep the whole armor on, and not simply 
some parts of it; and one of the very best methods 
of doing so is afforded in constant labor in the vine- 
yard of our Redeemer. And this great truth is 
forcibly taught in the parable of the talents. And 
Paul warning us against gratifying, or yielding to 
the desires of the flesh, says, — "For if ye live ac- 
cording to the flesh, ye shall die ; but if by the spirit 
ye put to death the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 
For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these 
are sons of God," Rom. 8 : 13, 14. By the last dec- 
laration the apostle means, not simply led by an in- 
tellectual knowledge of God, but by a constantly in- 
creasing and spiritually experimental knowledge of 
Him. And this is what Jesus means, when he says, 
And this is eternal life, to know thee, the only true 
God, and Jesus Christ whom thou didst send. And 
it is this living experimental knowledge which alone 
entitles one to a part in the resurrection from among 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



303 



the dead, and renders him worthy of what Jesus 
terms that age. And brother, please remember that 
Jesus tells us, Man shall not live upon bread alone, 
but upon every word that proceedeth from the 
mouth of God ; that is, the whole gospel, not a part 
of it. 

Now we all readily admit that Paul was one of the 
superior Christians of the primitive church, being 
favored with the various gifts of the Holy Spirit 
abundantly, and consequently, possessing great 
knowledge and understanding; and we should be 
willing to receive of him. And in this connection it 
is quite pertinent to call attention to his remarks in 
his letter to the Philippians, chap. 3 : 8-15, that we 
may notice the fact, that notwithstanding the apos- 
tle's past, and then present experience, which, please 
notice, he terms "a knowledge of Christ, yet he had 
not then attained to that more complete knowledge 
of his Redeemer which alone would secure him a 
part in the resurrection from among the dead. Please 
remember that Paul taught that all men would be 
resurrected, so that he would be certain of some kind 
of a resurrection with the rest of mankind. 

After having spoken of his standing and advan- 
tages with his own nation before his conversion, he 
says, " Yea, verily, I estimate all things to be loss 
for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus 
my Lord ; for whom I suffered the loss of all things, 
and do count them but refuse that I may gain Christ, 
and be found in him, not having my righteousness, 
that from the law, but that which is through faith in 



301 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Christ, the righteousness of God by the faith ; that I 
may know him, and the power of his resurrection, 
and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed 
to his death, if possibly, I may attain unto the resur- 
rection from among the dead. Not that I have al- 
ready grasped, or am already made perfect ; but I 
press forward, if so be, that I may seize that for 
which also I was seized by Christ Jesus. Brethren, 
I do not count myself to have yet laid hold upon ; 
but this I do, forgetting the things behind, and 
stretching forward to the things before, I press for- 
ward towards the watchman for the victor's reward 
of the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus." And 
in verses 20, 21, he says, "For our citizenship exists in 
heaven, from whence also we expect a Saviour, the 
Lord Jesus Christ, who shall fashion anew the body 
of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the 
body of his glory, according to the energy by which 
he is able to subject all things to himself." 

As the Olympic games are alluded to in the fore- 
going verses, and as both Phillipi and Corinth were 
Grecian cities, and consequently, the citizens of both 
were quite familiar with those games, and thus Paul 
used them as illustrating the Christian race, I now 
introduce the last four verses of 1 Cor., chap. 9, 
" Know ye not that they who run in a race, run all, 
but one receiveth the prize? [the victor's reward]. 
Even so run, that ye may grasp it. And every man 
that striveth in the games, is temperate in all things. 
Now they strive to receive a corruptible crown ; but 
we, an incorruptible. I therefore so run, as not 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



305 



obscurely. So box I, as not beating the air ; but 
I subdue my body with heavy blows, and enslave it ; 
lest perhaps, after that I have acted as a herald for 
others, I myself become rejected." These last verses 
explain his allusion, in Phil. 3, to the Olympic games. 
And we should remember that both these epistles 
were written from Home, while Paul was there suf- 
fering imprisonment, having previously abandoned 
all for Christ and endured severe persecutions and 
other sufferings arising wholly from his devotion to 
our common Redeemer. And further, we should re- 
member that he was 44 abundant in labor in Christ's 
vineyard, and not only devoted, but zealous," 
Neither did Paul question, nor do we, his acceptance 
by Christ; and consequently, we do not question 
that his peace was made with God, and his sins 
blotted out ; and that if he had then departed this 
life, he would have been saved, using the word 
saved in its general acceptation. But Paul knew that 
there was a fuller salvation yet awaiting him, and a 
"better resurrection " awaiting him than that to which 
he was then entitled, if he could but win, in the 
Christian race, the prize held forth to him by the 
Saviour ; and that prize was a crown, and that 
crown is secured only by securing a part in the first 
resurrection. Who doubts but that Paul then had 
some knowledge of Christ? But that knowledge 
was not satisfactory to him notwithstanding his past 
devotion, zeal, labors, sacrifices of every thing 
earthly, sufferings, knowledge, and abounding 
gifts of the Holy Spirit, in which he himself said, 



306 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



he was not "one whit behind the chiefest of the 
apostles." If so, why he does he say, " that I may 
know him and the power of his resurrection, and 
the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to 
his death, if possibly, I may attain unto the resurrec- 
tion from among the dead ? " Notice that it is not 
the resurrection of the dead, but the resurrection 
from among the dead; and that the latter was the 
resurrection which Christ had. Millions of dead 
were left, but he alone arose. And then, that his 
readers might have no doubt as to whether he had, 
or had not reached the point from which he could 
grasp the prize, he adds : Not that 1 have already 
grasped, or am already made perfect ; but I press 
forward, if so be, that I may seize, (or grasp) that 
for which I was seized by Christ Jesus. But to 
make his readers doubly sure that he had not then 
reached the point in his Christian race and experi- 
ence where he could grasp the victor's reward, he 
adds, " I do not count myself to have yet laid hold 
upon," [seized the prize]. When Paul says that he 
is pressing forward with entire devotion and with 
all his powers, disregarding all kinds and degrees of 
suffering, to seize that for which Christ seized him, 
we should well consider how Christ seized him from 
the foremost ranks of the persecutors of the church, 
and transformed him into one of its main pillars. But 
notice, that here Paul don't mention this ; that is, his 
power and extraordinary fruitfulness as a branch of 
Christ, as the purpose for which Christ called him, or 
rather seized him ; but that, in keeping with our Sav- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



30T 



iour's infinite love, he might attain to the like resur- 
rection that Christ attained to, and to the like inherit- 
ance to which Christ attained. And this is what he 
means, when he says, " heirs of God, and joint heirs 
with Jesus Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that 
we may also be glorified together," Rom. 8: 17. 
And this is also what Christ means when he says : 
And the glory which thou hast given me, I have 
given them, &c. And thus Paul says, Rom. 8 : 32, 
He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him 
up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely 
give us all things ; and in 1 Cor. 6 : 2, Know ye 
not that the saints shall judge the world ? Know ye 
not that we shall judge angels? This is Peter's 
abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of 
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It is not scarcely 
being saved. And attaining unto the first resurrec- 
tion is the act of passing through the strait gate of 
which our Saviour speaks, when he says, Strive to en- 
ter in at the strait gate, (or narrow door) : for many, 
I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not 
be able, Luke 13 : 24. Who are they, but believers ? 
Sinners do not try to enter there. I suggest to 
Christians to consider if this strait gate is not the 
first resurrection, instead of " scarcely " being " saved." 
I have already spoken about the baptism of fire, such 
as our Lord and the apostles endured ; and now ap- 
peal to the reader to decide, and to decide honestly 
before God, who sees and reads the inmost thoughts 
and inclinations of our hearts, whether the forego- 
ing teachings of Paul, setting forth, in unmistakable 



308 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



language, the fact that he was not then prepared for 
the first resurrection, notwithstanding his notable 
spiritual attainments, do not fully corroborate all I 
said respecting the necessity of the baptism of fire. 
I tell you plainly, brethren, that a large proportion 
of sincere Christians, and of course, all of every 
other class, are trying to climb up to heaven "some 
other way" than that Paul was traveling ; the former 
by reason of erroneous instruction, and the latter 
class, from the same cause, and also the greater one, 
that they do not bear the cross as it is now pre- 
sented to them. That is, the latter class do not 
what they deem to be their duty to God according 
to the light they have, and therefore, no increase of 
light is given them. And this unfaithfulness arises 
in part from fearing what men may be able to do, 
by one means, or by another. As for fearing the 
outside world and in any degree, or at any time, 
modifying our Christian course in order to avoid its 
attacks, or to receive its favor, either in mass, or in- 
individually, that is the sheerest nonsense ; for we 
enlisted to fight the world, as well as other enemies. 
And we not only enlisted to fight the world, but 
to fight strictly according to that system of tactics 
taught by our Lord Jesus Christ and the apostles. 
And both practiced what they taught. And we are 
to live and fight, as they lived and fought, and not 
according to some different system, although the ap- 
parent difference to us may be slight. But remem- 
ber that a slight variation from a straight line pro- 
duces a great divergence. And what was Christ's 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 309 



system ? A system of strict fidelity, love and cour- 
age. Did he curry favor with the world taken either 
individually or collectively? No, but with and in 
fearless love for all mankind, he ever faced a frown- 
ing world, and in that fearless love he overcame 
the foe. 

Christian, your Redeemer requires his co-heirs to 
pursue precisely the same course, which, indeed, is but 
a "reasonable service." Universalist, this is required 
of you as much as of any other believer. God don't 
favor you with any easier method of becoming an 
heir of God, and a joint heir with Jesus Christ, than 
he does others. You cannot ascend to heaven by 
"some other way" any more than other people. Let 
us all who profess the name of Christ, take careful 
heed, and know that we are not traveling that cir- 
cuitous route which will never take us there; for 
there is a vast amount of both such religious preach- 
ing and traveling, and thus many believers deceive, 
and are being deceived. May we, indeed, so live as 
to constantly have Jesus' aid, remembering his 
words, — "without me, ye can do nothing." We 
must have the nature of Jesus which is the nature of 
God, in order to overcome as Jesus overcame. Poor 
weak man, natural man, cannot overcome alone — it 
is not in him to do so. And it is only the over- 
comer, who becomes an heir of God and a joint heir 
with Jesus Christ, and thus sits down with the Re- 
deemer on his throne, even as he overcame and sat 
down with the Father on his throne — Rev. 12 : 11 . 
Rom. 12 : 21. 2 Peter 2 : 19, 20. Rev. 2 : 7, 11, 17, 
26. 3 : 5, 12, 21. 21 : 7. 



310 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Reader, don't let any religious teachers, whether 
they are styled great preachers, or not, cause you to 
believe that the real saint's inheritance is any thing 
less, or something different from what Jesus and the 
apostles tell you it is. There are many preachers of 
high-sounding fame who have not Christ formed in 
them "the hope of glory." They have a hope of 
salvation from an eternal hell ; and they think that 
all who are saved from that kind of a hell, are cer- 
tain of going to heaven. But that don't follow; 
neither does the Bible teach it. If such preachers 
would look about carefully through their congrega- 
tions, they might possibly find some obscure meek 
follower of Jesus who could teach them respecting 
these things. But such are seldom found among 
those parishioners who, at their elegant homes, afford 
the minister both gas tronomical and intellectual enter- 
tainment, which of itself is proper, and good in its 
place. But the jewels I refer to, are not apt to be 
discovered by such preachers until they are called to 
visit them in their last sickness, or to preach their fun- 
eral sermon ; and frequently, not even then. Neith- 
er was the widow casting her two mites into the 
treasury, noticed by any one except the Lord Jesus. 
And our human natures are precisely the same now 
as they were then. And for the benefit of those be- 
lievers who are unconscious of the fact, I here re- 
mark that spiritual christians are readily discovered 
by spiritual ones, but very slowly, by any other 
class; for the souls, and consequently the feelings 
and sensibilities of the spiritual ones quickly respond 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



311 



to one another, as they are of the same spirit, the 
Christ. And thus a spiritual pastor quickly recog- 
nizes the spiritual members of his flock, and they as 
quickly recognize him as one of the good undershep- 
herds of the Chief Shepherd. And please notice 
that Peter tells us that such, at the manifestation of 
the Chief Shepherd, shall receive an unfading crown 
of glory, 1 Peter 5 : 4. 

I have spoken in regard to fearing the world. But 
some who love the Lord, and desire to promote his 
cause, fear the opposition of a dead church or society, 
much more than they do the outside world. From 
sad and disheartening experience, they know that 
opposition, and often dread to meet it. They have 
looked for expected sympathy, in the house of their 
supposed friends ; but in lieu of that sympathy they 
have encountered coldness and indifference, as soon 
as they attempted to progress and grasp those higher 
principles of the gospel of Christ, to which their 
religious associates had not attained; and indeed, 
had no desire to do so. But those meeting with 
such opposition, should remember that this is not 
from the church, so much as from the world within 
the so-called church. World loving professors in 
their own persons bring their deity along with them : 
as on the other side, the spiritual members of Jesus 
bring the Lord Jesus in their persons. For Paul 
tells us that the body of the spiritual Christian is 
the temple of the Holy Spirit , and that spirit is 
Christ. And furthermore, Jesus says, Ye in me, and 
I in you. And John says, If any one loves the 



312 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



world, the love of the Father is not in him, 1 John 
2 : 15. And if the love of the Father is not in a 
man, it is very certain, Christ is not there. Again, 
any candid person will admit that if a man has 
Christ in him, he also will have his spirit. But what 
says Paul of a person who has not Christ's spirit ? — 
"If a man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none 
of his," Rom. 8 : 9. That will be the difficulty with 
all foolish virgins at the parousia of the Lord; 
they will not have the spirit of Christ, and not hav- 
ing the spirit, they are not his ; and therefore, he 
does not recognize them as such, but replies, — "Ver- 
ily, I say unto you, I know you not." Professing 
Christian, remember this — that Christ, unless we 
have his spirit, don't recognize us now as his, any 
more than he will at his coming. Let us remember 
these things. And may the Father enable us to be 
his continually; as here lies our only safety; for Je- 
sus tells us, that "In the hour ye think not, the Son 
of man cometh." Therefore, we should carefully, 
and with earnest prayer for light and understanding, 
study the character of Christ by his teachings and 
his works of love. His nature, his spirit, was mani- 
fested by his teachings and his works ; and so are 
our natures and our spirits manifested in like man- 
ner. Rest assured, brethren, that it is supreme folly 
for us to imagine that we have the spirit of Christ, 
when our spirits do not produce fruits like his. By 
their fruits ye shall know them, says Jesus. , Now, let 
us, by our own fruits, know ourselves. Let us ex- 
amine, or judge ourselves, lest we be " condemned 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 313 

with the world." Paul tells us that "the fruit of the 
spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, 
goodness, faithfulness, meekness, temperance, or self- 
control." And then he adds, against such there is 
no law, Gal. 5 : 22, 23. And in verses 19, 20, the 
apostle also gives us the fruits of the flesh, so that 
every person may, if he will, contrast them with one 
another, and especially with his own fruits, and thus 
know whether he is of Christ, or not. "Now the 
works (fruits) of the flesh are manifest, which are 
adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 
idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, 
factions, divisions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness, 
revelings, and such like. And in verse 24, he adds, 
And they that are of Christ have crucified the flesh 
with the passions and lusts thereof. • 

Sectarians would do well to notice that factions 
and divisions are enumerated among the works, or 
fruits of the flesh ; and that the apostle plainly de- 
clares that they who practice such things shall not 
inherit the kingdom of God. How will it be with 
them who both teach and practice some of these of- 
fences ? Here Paul condemns sectarianism, as when 
he says to the Corinthians, "Now this I mean, that 
each one of you says, I am of Paul ; and I of Apollos ; 
and I of Cephas ; for whereas there is among you 
jealousy and strife, are ye not carnal?" From ob- 
servation I believe a majority of the Protestant min- 
istry teach that sectarianism is right, and serves to 
promote the cause of our Redeemer; sometimes say- 
ing, that where there are so many religious creeds, 



314 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



and what they call churches, that every one who 
wishes to serve God, can find some religious body 
which he can join, and thus all are suited. Now if 
they would add, and so is Satan, they would give 
utterance to one unalloyed truth in that connection, 
as Satan is always pleased with every teaching that 
conflicts with those of Jesus and the apostles. Re- 
- member that Satan overthrew our first parents by 
persuading Eve to adopt and pursue a different 
method for promoting their happiness than that pre- 
scribed by their Creator ; and we know the result. 
And little children sometimes when absent from 
their parents, pursue a different course from that 
which their parents have enjoined, thinking that 
such variation is harmless, but the result is some- 
times Heath. But Paul tells us, that it is in malice 
we are to be children, but in wisdom men. Now as 
God is omniscient, it is wisdom for us to pursue the 
course he has pointed out, and leave the results with 
him. 

But I said we would make a summary of Jesus' 
discourse. Let us attend to it. From verse 44 to 
51, chap. 24, and from verse 14 to 31, chap. 25, is de- 
scribed a class of unfaithful and disobedient Chris- 
tians, but believers. Of course, in verse 14, the man 
going into another country represents our Saviour, 
who ascended into the heavens, and whom the heav- 
ens must contain until the restitution of all things ; 
and the servants represent Christians, faithful and 
unfaithful — fruitful branches of the true vine, and 
unfruitful ones, and we here perceive the one is re- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



315 



warded, and the other is punished. But we are not 
told that the punishment of the unfaithful servant is 
eternal, or even of age duration, or during an age. 
But we are told that where they are, there is weep- 
ing and gnashing of teeth, showing that their pun- 
ishment is severe. But please notice that Jesus does 
not tell us the punishment is eternal, or even of long 
duration ; and therefore, we have no right to add to 
the Scriptures by saying that such punishment is 
eternal. 

It is our religious training that has made us come 
to that conclusion. In fact, I have no right to say that 
such punishment continues a year, or an age, unless I 
find authority for it in the scriptures. The starving 
prodigal fed hogs ; but when he saw his folly, he was 
not only permitted to return to his father's house, 
but was received with joy and celebration. And he 
was not only welcomed home, but welcomed as a 
son. Yet he had no property interests there ; but a 
father's love remained. And when he looked upon 
his brother's- happy home and broad possessions, it is 
quite probable that he often wept over his past folly 
and sin ; but he was yet a son. When Jesus uses a 
case like this to illustrate God's feelings towards his 
creatures, what right have I to say that the punish- 
ment of the unprofitable servant will continue for- 
ever ? He might have had a glorious inheritance in 
heaven, where Jesus exhorts us to lay up our treasures 
by good works, but instead of that, he wrapped up 
his talent in a napkin, and did not improve upon 
it ; and therefore, like the prodigal, loses his inherit- 
ance. 



316 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Notice that not making a good use of our talents 
in the service of God is one offence. Quarreling 
Avith, or persecuting our brethren, or fellow-servants, 
is another , and these two offences are set forth as 
occurring among Christians. But beating our fellow 
servants is mentioned as arising, or originating from 
the idea that the Lord delays his coming. Now, are 
there not many of the clergy who say the same now ? 
And do they not persecute their fellow-servants now 
for opinion's sake? That is, do they not arraign and 
try them and also degrade them from the ministry 
for preaching what they sincerely believe is the gos- 
pel of Christ? Certainly they do. Let such ser- 
vants beware lest they find themselves much more 
degraded in the day of the Lord Jesus. Where will 
your so-called churches be in that day ? Your Roman, 
Episcopalian, Methodist, Baptist, &c, " churches ? " 
They will vanish quicker than a ghost in the midday 
sun. In fact, you all admit that there will be no such 
thing as sects in heaven. You say sectarianism will 
not be admitted there. Then how will you enter 
who have so much of it in you? No smuggling can 
be practiced there. Therefore, according to the teach- 
ings of Jesus, and your own words and acts, you 
seem to be the very characters described in the last 
verses of chap. 24. You sectarians speak quite cor- 
rectly when you say " Our church ; " but you would 
do well to see that your church is the church of 
Christ ; and further, that you don't beat any mem- 
ber of Christ's body. But please notice that to this 
class of offenders Jesus does not say, Depart from 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



31T 



me ye cursed into that age of fire, or fire of long 
duration prepared for the devil and his angels. Jesus 
settles with believers first, both faithful and unfaith- 
ful servants ; and then follows the judgment of the 
world or the nations. 

But I think we have every reason to believe that 
here Jesus only describes a portion of the general 
judgment, or the judgment of a certain class of of- 
fenders ; that is, those guilty of the offence specified ; 
for at the general judgment men will be tried for a 
variety of offences, as shown in Rev. 20. 

I have before remarked, that with the ministry in 
general, it is all heaven, or all hell — an eternal 
heaven, or an eternal hell. And having this theory 
of all heaven, or all hell, firmly established in their 
minds, they make all the teachings of Jesus and the 
apostles conform to it. In their imagination, but 
not in fact, they actually bind the Almighty by their 
creed, telling us that God has, in the gift of his Son, 
done all that he can do for man. But do the teach- 
ings of Jesus and the apostles tells us so? Mark 
this question, and consider it. When men who have 
been our religious instructors for twenty-five or forty 
years, and whom we have esteemed for their piety 
and learning, have constantly taught us, and forcibly 
impressed upon us, that a certain principle, or theory 
is correct, and that it is clearly sustained by and 
based upon the scriptures, we are quite liable to ac- 
cept such a theory as the truth ; and there is scarcely 
one man in ten thousand who will ever thoroughly 
examine the question to ascertain whether the theory 



318 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



is correct or not. Such theorists, in their imaginary 
wisdom, mark out a certain course for God to pur- 
sue, and tell you that God cannot vary in the least 
from that course ; when to tell the real truth, that 
course is " our creed." Sectarians, consider it, and 
see if it is not really so. Perhaps you never thought, 
that with our creed, you have been binding the Al- 
mighty ! With your creed you have bound and 
limited your own intellectual and spiritual vision of 
the Almighty, and you thought God was bound. Let 
finite man reflect millions of years and then he 
would not conceive the first thing which Infinity 
could not accomplish! The human .mind cannot 
imagine any thing which God cannot do ; but our 
creed can tell you of something. We comprehend 
according to our ability, or our intellectual capacity. 
Therefore, many things which in our childhood we 
regarded as correct, or true, we now regard as incor- 
rect, or untrue ; and therefore, the greatest fool is 
the man who never learns. But it is folly to talk of 
a man's walking with his feet in the stocks. And so 
it is folly to talk of a man's advancing in the knowl- 
edge of the gospel when his mind is bound by a false 
creed. A man may acquire knowledge quite rapidly 
in youth, but suppose he then ceases to make any 
further acquisition, saying, I know it all ; what will 
be his standing at the age of forty-five ? Will not 
progressive scholars be far in advance of him? In 
their company he would always desire to talk of the 
rudiments of education ; and the}^, of the advanced 
principles. And thus it is with creed-bound preachers. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



319 



They say to the progressive Christian who has been 
constantly acquiring a fuller knowledge of God and 
of his Son, Come and hear me preach. He goes ; 
and what does he hear? Simply the first principles 
of the doctrine of Christ, and frequently there is 
error mingled with them. 

Now every person who believes that an eternal hell 
is the portion of every one who dies with one sin that 
is not repented of before death, in his thoughts de- 
prives God of free will and action : and he does this, 
by believing that God has established an irrevocable 
law which prevents him from ever extending his 
mercy and love to such an individual. Do the 
Scriptures teach you that God has done this ? Search 
and see. Don't rely upon any deductions you may 
make — creeds are deductions; but find it plainly an- 
nounced that God has done this. Search carefully 
and long. In this searching, if you have an honest 
heart toward God, (which I have already defined), 
you may discover other truths which may greatly re- 
fresh your spirits by affording you a more thorough 
knowledge of God and his holy Son. And while 
you search, please remember that Paul tells us, that 
"finally, all Israel shall be saved;" and that Jesus 
said to the unbelieving Jews about him, and who 
perished in that unbelief, u Ye shall not see me here- 
after until ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh 
in the name of the Lord." 

Although there is no resurrection mentioned in 
this discourse, yet the general resurrection may pre- 
cede the judgment mentioned in the last sixteen 



320 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



verses of Matt. 25. Possibly our Saviour had so 
thoroughly instructed his disciples respecting both 
the first and the second resurrection, that he did not 
deem it necessary to mention them in this connec- 
tion. We should remember that the question of the 
resurrection was a very prominent one with the 
Jews; indeed so prominent, that Jesus could not 
avoid speaking of it on many occasions; or more 
properly speaking, did not do so, but treated the 
subject in that able and godlike manner which, as 
on other occasions, displayed his superior wisdom 
and comprehension, and confounded the Sadducees 
who denied the resurrection of either body or spirit. 
And in this connection we should remember that he 
had also raised Lazarus and others from the dead: and 
we should not forget his words to Martha at the resur- 
rection of Lazarus. Please turn and read that con- 
versation, John 11. There we read that Lazarus 
had already been entombed four days when Jesus 
arrived, verse 17, and probably decomposition had 
considerably progressed, and that Martha was cor- 
rect when she said of her brother, "by this time he 
stinketh." I call attention to this circumstance, the 
decomposition of Lazarus' body, that the reader may 
notice that Jesus, while in the flesh, had the power 
not only to restore natural life to a dead body, but 
also to decomposed flesh. And there are also two 
other important matters connected with the resur- 
rection of Lazarus to which I should here call the 
reader's attention as preliminary to that which will 
soon follow. First, I call attention to the fact that in 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



321 



John 12 : 9-17, where the resurrection of Lazarus is 
mentioned, sxvsxpwv is found in the original, signifying 
from among the dead, in like manner as the same term 
is used when the resurrection of Christ is mentioned, 
as in Acts 10 : 41. 26 : 23. 1 Cor. 15 : 12, and re- 
quest the reader to remember that both Christ and 
Lazarus were raised out from among the dead; and 
thus, in this regard, their resurrections were similar. 
Second, I call attention to the fact, that Lazarus was 
raised with a fleshly body, while Jesus was raised 
with a spiritual one. In this regard their resurrec- 
tions were very dissimilar, and were attended with 
very different results. For Lazarus died again, but 
Jesus dies no more — Knowing that Christ being 
raised from among the dead, clieth no more — Death 
no longer hath dominion over him, Rom. 6 : 9. Now 
notice that it will be the same with those who shall have 
a part in the first resurrection, when they shall be 
raised with glorious spiritual bodies like Christ's, 
who shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, 
that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, 
Phil. 3 : 21. Luke 20 : 35, 36. 

Can a Christian fail to see that the overcomers 
who alone have a part in that resurrection will, in all 
respects, be joint heirs with Jesus. They are like 
him in person, that is, have spiritual bodies. They 
sit down with him on his throne. They are heirs of 
God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. They shall 
eat of the tree of life. They shall not be hurt by 
the second death ; and on such the second death has 
no power. To them is given authority over the na~ 



322 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tions, and they shall be priests of God and of 
Christ; and shall reign with him a thousand (or 
the thousand), years, Rev. 2 : 20. In fact, from 
those who are found worthy of a part in the first 
resurrection, God reserves nothing of the glory 
which he has bestowed upon his Son. Therefore 
Paul says of the Father, — u Having given us Christ, 
will he not with him give us all things." Now who 
are the class termed us by Paul but those like him- 
self, who in writing to Timothy near the "close of his 
life, could say, "I have fought the good fight, I have 
completed the race, I have kept the faith; henceforth 
there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, 
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to 
me at that day; and not onl} T to me, but to all them 
that have loved his appearing," 2 Tim. 4 : 7, 8. Yes 
lie had overcome all of Ms foes, as did his Master* 
and had won the crown of which he speaks. And 
the condition, that we shall overcome, is either ex- 
pressly or tacitly attached to the privilege of son- 
ship and heirship throughout the entire gospel. The 
church does not comprehend her present high call- 
ing of God in Christ Jesus, neither does she com- 
prehend her future one. Christians don't believe 
that Christ really meant it, when he said to the 
Twelve, Ye shall sit on thrones judging the twelve 
tribes of Israel. The ministry tell us that it means 
something else ; although the apostles being Hebrews, 
and also twelve in number, corresponding in number 
with the twelve tribes, it would seem very proper 
that they should judge their own nation, as the saints 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



323 



are to judge the world, Matt. 19 : 28. Luke 25 : 
31. 1 Cor. 6 : 2. When Christ takes to himself his 
great power and reigns over the nations, the saints, 
the overcomers, will reign with him ; and it will be 
as real a reign for them as for Him ; yet the present 
church does not believe it. Why ? Because the 
clergy neither believe nor teach it. They tell us 
that instead of being the judges of the world in that 
day, that Christians will then be judged with the 
world; but that Christians will then be acquitted, 
while the wicked will be convicted and damned and 
sent to an eternal hell. Yet they tell us that Christians 
go directly to heaven when they die, and have been 
going there continually for over eighteen hundred 
years. Yes, for six thousand years. Therefore 
their theory is, that Christians are admitted into 
heaven and the glorious presence of the Most High 
and the Lamb, there to remain until some future 
period, when they shall be arraigned before the judg- 
ment seat for trial. Such a course of procedure 
seems passing strange ! Who is simple enough to 
believe that Paul will ever be arraigned for trial at 
the judgment bar? If he believed it when wrote to 
Timothy, then he had a very unreliable method of 
expressing himself, and one would do better to give a 
large proportion of his teachings to the winds. But 
Paul in his day declared himself a wise master-builder, 
declaring that he received the gospel from the blessed 
Redeemer by revelation ; and this being so, he was 
not only an able expounder of the first principles, 
but also of the more profound principles of the gos- 



324 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY, 



pel , and among other things, particularly teaching 
Christians that the church is the body and espoused 
bride of Christ, and that Christians are members of 
the body of Christ, and thus members one of an- 
other. In fact, the first lesson Paul received from 
his Saviour was, that whatever, either good or evil, 
he did to Christians was done to Him, when Jesus 
said, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? Now 
imagine Paul on trial, as related in Matt. 25, and in 
such utter ignorance of the instructions which he 
had so abundantly received, and also imparted to 
others, that we hear him saying to the Saviour, 
Lord, when saw I thee an hungered and fed thee ? 
or thirsty and gave thee drink ? And when saw I 
thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked and 
clothed thee? And when saw I thee sick or in 
prison, and came unto thee ? I respectfully recom- 
mend to the clergy the consideration of this matter. 

Both the Saviour and Paul teach us that overcom- 
ing Christians shall be associate judges with the 
Lord in the judgment of the world; and thus I 
think the Saviour might be represented as the Chief 
Justice on that occasion. Therefore, the Saviour's plac- 
ing the saints on trial with the world would be like 
the chief justice of an earthly tribunal arraigning his 
associate justices with accused parties who were 
brought before them for trial. Such religious teach- 
ing makes Paul an ignoramus upon that great and 
glorious da}^ for the saints of the Most High, and 
hides from sight the future glory of the true church. 

Again, all through the gospel Jesus is represented 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



325 



as the Bridegroom and the true church is represented 
as his bride ; and will Christ at that day place his 
bride on trial with the world? Long before the 
judgment of the sheep and the goats Christ will have 
presented the true church to himself, "a glorious 
church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing 
* * holy, and without blemish," and will have 
transferred her to those glorious mansions in his 
Father's house of which he said, I go to prepare a 
place for you, Eph. 5 : 27. John 14 : 2, 3. And if 
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, 
and will receive you unto myself, that where I am, 
there ye may be also. And preceding the judgment 
of Rev. 20, we read in Rev. 19 : 7, Let us be glad 
and rejoice, and give honor to God, for the marriage 
of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself 
ready. And in the first part of Rev. 20, verses 4-6, 
we read that judgment is given to the saints, and 
that they reign with Christ the thousand years be- 
fore the final judgment of the world takes place, 
instead of being arraigned and on trial with the rest 
of mankind. No, the trial of the elect has been 
going on for 'over eighteen hundred years, and I 
think we may expect this trial soon to end, and the 
trial of the world to commence. Let Christians 
know and feel that they are now, in fact, on trial; 
and they will generally live and conduct themselves 
differently from what they do at present. Now on 
earth a true husband shares with his wife all that he 
has ; and he not only does this, but he delights in so 
doing in order to make her truly happy. But Christ 



326 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



will in all these things far excel the most complete 
model of an earthly husband, even as he excels all 
other men. Therefore, he will share all his glory 
with his bride, and will not reign without her. 
Again Christ will remember the temptations, trials 
and sufferings like his own, which his bride has 
passed through while purifying herself here on the 
earth, where he also suffered, that she may be pure, 
as John says they do, who hope to meet the Lord, 
1 John 3 : 3. In Matt. 12 : 32, we hear Jesus say- 
ing, Fear not, little flock, it is your Father's good 
pleasure to give you the kingdom : and in Luke- 22 : 
29, But ye are they who have continued with me in my 
temptations, and I appoint unto you a kingdom even 
as my Father appointed unto me, &c. Reader, I ask 
you, that you allow no one to make you believe that 
Jesus meant any thing different from what he plainly 
and positively asserted by the foregoing words. I 
here say in brotherly kindness, that there are many 
professed preachers of the gospel who need some 
very plain talk, such as they would receive from 
Paul if he were here in the body. 

Also in Dan. 7 : 18, we read, But the saints of the 
Most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the 
kingdom forever, even forever and ever. But re- 
member it is only the overcomers who are seated on 
the throne. They constitute the little flock to whom 
u it is the Father's good pleasure to give the king- 
dom." These constitute the Bride, and are the first 
fruit unto God and the Lamb, Rev. 14 : 6 — a kind 
of first fruit of His creatures, Jas. 1 : 18. These 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY, 



327 



constitute the elect. But, brother, remember that 
many are called, but few are chosen, or elected. 
God called many Hebrews out of Egypt, but only 
two of the whole number were elected to enter into 
the promised land. The Hebrews were then on 
trial, and we know the result. And remember the 
parable of the sower, Matt. 13 : 2-8. 

But if there is a first-fruits, there must be, of neces- 
sity, a second harvest, or such language would not be 
used as " first-fruits." Let us know more of the plan 
of salvation — know more of the truth, as it is by the 
truth we are enlightened and sanctified, and brought 
to a more complete knowledge of our Redeemer. 
We see that God has been, and is yet electing the 
church, the body, the bride of his Son, of which 
Christ is the head, having pre-eminence in all things. 
But has he left all the rest of mankind to suffer eter- 
nal damnation, as taught by the Calvinistic theory? 
Far from it. The only true God, who so loved the 
world that he gave his only begotten Son, that the 
world might be saved through him, has never enter- 
tained, or taught such a theory, either through his 
Son, or any of his apostles ; and this I will proceed to 
prove. T directly assert that such a theory is from 
hell, and not from heaven. In fact, it is one of the 
very greatest and most abominable lies in the sight of 
heaven, that " the father of lies " has ever told since 
the creation, — and it has some especial claims for be- 
ing placed at the head of the list. Let the historian, if 
he can, tell us of another dogma that during the past 
three hundred years has more divided the disciples 



328 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY, 

of Jesus. And also let him name another which has 
so effectually hidden the love of God from the view 
of men in general; and even caused Christians to 
question both the love and the justice of God, as has 
the Calvinistic theory of reprobation. But one of 
the most effective methods of sweeping away a false 
theory upon any subject is to present the true one, 
which I shall now proceed to do, first laying a good 
foundation upon the teachings of Christ and the 
apostles. 

TRUE ELECTION. 

That there is an election, I have already shown 
from the Scriptures ; so there is no issue upon that 
point. But God does not elect the little flock, at the 
expense of the many, but rather for the benefit of 
the many. God elected Abraham, and said to him, 
" In thee and thy seed shall all the families of the 
earth be blessed." Paul, commenting upon this 
promise, Gal. 3 : 16, tells us that seed is Christ. Is 
it Christ individually and alone who is here referred 
to as Abraham's seed ? Most certainly not ; for in 
verses 27-29, Paul adds, " For as many of you as were 
baptized into Christ did put on Christ, * * * for ye 
are all one in Christ Jesus ; and if ye are Christ's, 
then are ye Abraham's seed, heirs according to the 
promise " — seed and heirs according the promise 
originally made unto Abraham, Jesus Christ being 
the head, and they who are Christ's at his parousia 
being the body, the little flock, members of his body 
and members one of another, and whom Christ 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



329 



speaks of as himself, when he says, Saul, Saul, why 
persecutest thou me ? And this oneness with Christ 
is taught throughout the Epistles — Christ the head, 
and the church the body and bride. See Eph. 1 : 
22, 23. 4 : 12. 5 : 22-32. Rom. 12 : 4, 5. 1 Cor. 
12 : 27. Col. 1 : 18. And further, his body, the 
true church, is mentioned as filling up the measure 
of Christ's sufferings : Col. 1 : 24. 2 Cor. 1 : 5. 
2 Tim. 2 : 10, — a portion of the gospel to which the 
present easy-going church is almost a stranger, for- 
getting that it is written, — Heirs of God, and joint- 
heirs with Jesus Christ, if so be that we suffer with 
him, that we may be also glorified with him. — Rom. 
8 : 17. But the oneness of himself and the church, 
Christ previously taught, when he said to his disci- 
ples, In that day ye shall know that I am in my Fa- 
ther, and ye in me, and I in you, — John 14 : 20. 

Thus the point that we are of the seed of Abra- 
ham, if we are Christ's, is fully established. Now 
that we also, with Christ, are the seed of the woman, 
(Eve), is too plain to be controverted. Therefore, 
being with Christ, both of the seed of Abraham and 
of the seed of the woman, we are also joint-heirs to 
that promise made away back in the garden of Eden, 
that the seed of the woman should bruise the ser- 
pent's head, and that he should bruise the heel of 
the woman's seed, Gen. 3 : 15. Not the death of 
Christ alone, but the sufferings and death of Christ, 
and the persecutions and sufferings of his body, the 
church, constitute the bruising of the heel ; and the 
overthrow and bringing to naught of Satan and his 



330 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



kingdom by the Redeemer and his church, constitute 
the bruising of the head of Satan. 

But the body and bride of Christ will not be com- 
plete until the last member of that body is perfected. 
But when the elect church is completed, will God's 
plan and the salvation of the human race then be 
accomplished? Far from it. The first fruits have 
only been gathered. The prayer of Christ for the 
church only, will then have been fulfilled when she 
shall be united with the Bridegroom. Carefully 
read John 17, and you will discover that the 
world finally has a place in that prayer. Christ 
prays for the church first, that all the members 
thereof may be one in Him. For what purpose does 
he say, — " That the world may believe," etc., and 
then Christ adds, And the glory which thou hast 
given me, T have given unto them, that they may be 
one, even as we are one, I in them and thou in me, 
that they may be perfected into one, that the world 
may know that thou didst send me, and hast loved 
them as thou hast loved me. For what purpose does 
Jesus say he has bestowed upon true believers the 
glory which the Father had given him ? That they 
might be one. And he again declares that the final 
object of that unity is that the world may know that 
the Father sent him, and that the Father loves the 
church as he loves the Son. 

Has the church yet received that glory? Cer- 
tainly not. Paul's words refute such an idea when 
he says, Rom. 8 : 17, 18, 23, If so be that we suffer 
with him, that we may be also glorified with him. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



831 



For I reckon the sufferings of this present time are 
not worthy to be compared with the glory which 
shall be revealed in us * * * and not only so, but 
ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, 
even we ourselves groan within ourselves waiting for 
adoption, the redemption of our body. And it is well 
worthy of notice that Christ uses the same Greek 
word which is here rendered redemption, when he 
says, (Luke 21 : 28) But when these things begin to 
come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads, because 
your redemption draweth nigh. What things? 
Those mentioned in verses 25 and 26. Read from 
verse five, and you will percieve that all those things 
previously mentioned have taken place in their order 
and that we are now at the point foretold in verse 
24, where Jerusalem is being trodden down by the 
Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles is fulfilled. 
Therefore, it is evident that the redemption here 
mentioned by the Lord Jesus, and that mentioned 
by Paul are one and the same ; and furthermore, Je- 
sus tells us when to expect it. Now the church at 
present generally believes, that at this point the 
work of salvation ceases, and the final judgment of 
all mankind, saint and sinner, immediately follows, 
that the saints then enter into the enjoyment of eter- 
nal happiness and rest with Christ, and that all oth- 
ers are doomed to eternal woe and wretchedness. 
But if this is so, why does Jesus mention the world, 
the mass of mankind, as he does in John 17 ? And 
why does he speak of their believing after the church 
is glorified ? And why does James, at the council of 



332 



NEW" TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the apostles, Acts 15 : 14, 17, speak of God's taking 
out a people for his name from among the Gentiles, 
and after that, of the residue of men seeking the 
Lord ? But notice that Paul says, We trust in the 
living God, who is the Saviour of all men, especially 
of them that believe, — 1 Tim. 4 : 10. — Again, For as 
by one man's disobedience [Adam] many were made 
sinners, so by the obedience of one [Christ] shall 
many be made righteous, Rom. 5 : 19. For as in 
Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made 
alive, — 1 Cor. 15 : 22. Then come the times for the 
"restitution of all things," mentioned by Peter, 
when he says, Acts 3 : 21, of Jesus, " Whom the 
heaven must receive until the times of restitution of 
all things whereof God spake by the mouth of his 
holy prophets within the memory of man. There- 
fore, me know that all men will be restored to life ; 
but will all be restored to life, or raised, with a spir- 
itual body ? Or is it only they who have been born of 
the Spirit, or born from above, who will be resurrec- 
ted with spiritual bodies ? This restitution of what 
was lost in Adam is for the whole world ; but the 
bride of Christ receives that, and also that which is 
so glorious that it is beyond the conception of hu- 
manity. As Peter tells us that the heaven must re- 
ceive Jesus until the times of the restoration of all 
things, we may infer, that such restoration begins 
when Jesus leaves heaven to receive his Bride. No- 
tice that Peter does not say the time of restoration, 
but the times ; so we may properly infer that vari- 
ous periods of time will be consumed in this great 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



333 



work, and I think that the Scriptures so teach. In- 
deed, we are told, ReT. 20, that the millennial age 
forms one period of these times. And then follows 
another period during which Satan again deceives the 
nations and leads them to wage war against the 
saints, and "the beloved city," and meets with his 
final overthrow. But there is one assertion in this 
chapter that it is very important to remember : that 
is, "'But the rest of the dead lived not until the thou- 
sand years should be finished; " for this declaration 
serves to hold one from rushing away into some false 
theories now prevalent. How much time is consumed 
by Satan in preparing the nations for his final struggle 
for supremacy, we know not: and how long that con- 
test may continue, we are not told. Neither are we 
informed how long a period of time intervenes be- 
tween that and the general resurrection ; but we are 
told that during this latter period the present heaven 
and earth pass away. And who can tell how much 
time the general judgment may occupy? But the 
judgment or trial of the world may commence with 
the millennium, when judgment is said to have been 
given to the overcomers, Rev. 20 : 4, (as Paul tells 
us the saints shall judge the world.) and continue up 
to the very moment of the rendition of judgment. 
For we are told that M The dead were judged out of 
the things which were written in the books, accord- 
ing to their works." And thus judgment is rendered 
in accordance with that record, or on that record. 
And thus this judgment seems to be but the rendi- 
tion, or rather the announcement of the decree made 



334 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



either in favor, or against each one, as his name may, 
or may not be found already eiTtered in the book of 
life. Indeed, do not the entries in the book of life 
of some names show that judgment had already been 
rendered and entered against, or in favor of each and 
every one ? How could any one's name be entered 
in the book of life, and there remain, unless final 
judgment had already been entered in his favor ? 

And as some of our Advent brethren believe that 
none of the vast number here brought to judgment 
will be finally saved, but that all will be cast into 
the lake of fire, I ask the following questions, — Why 
» then is the book of life there ? and why should it be 
even mentioned ? If you say that no one's name was 
written in it, would it not be a farce to then search 
for it ? for the word " found " being used, indicates 
that a search was made for each name. Again, if no 
one of the number is saved, will not this judgment 
result very differently from that of Matt. 25 ? for 
Jesus tells us there that a portion of the number en- 
ter into eternal life ; while here you send all to eter- 
nal death. Brethren, it is not well, while we con- 
sider one portion of the gospel, to forget other por- 
tions ; but we should carefully compare scripture 
with scripture. Does Jesus, in Matt. 25, refer to 
this judgment, or does he not ? I think he does. 
But there only one class of offenders is mentioned, 
but there their penalty seems to be the same as here. 

I will now present other Scripture to show that 
others are finally saved besides those who attain to 
the first resurrection ; but I readily admit, and here 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



335 



assert, that such will not be joint heirs with our 
blessed and glorious Redeemer, of that glory which 
is prepared for the over comers who can say with Paul, 
I have fought a good fight, I have kept the faith, 
etc., — and of whom he says, When he shall appear, 
we also shall appear with him in glory, Col. 3 : 4. 

Scriptures showing the final salvation of those be- 
lievers who are not found worthy to be numbered 
with the joint heirs with Jesus Christ, and are not 
found worthy to be numbered with the " little flock " 
at the napooaca of the Lord Jesus — servants, but not 
overcoming Christians. 

First, I call attention to the Beatitudes, so-called, 
Matt. 5 : 1-12 ; and notice that to different classes, 
are promised different rewards, or inheritance, or 
blessings. For instance : — " Blessed are the meek, 
for they shall inherit the earth ; " not heaven. 
" Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mer- 
cy." Notice there is mercy promised to this class, 
nothing more — no inheritance whatever. Then fol- 
lows a much higher class, and of course, with higher 
attainments. " Blessed are the pure in heart, for 
they shall see God." Yes, the purer a person's heart 
is, the clearer view he has of God, both in this pres- 
ent life, and that to come. But here is the highest 
attainment with the highest reward — " Blessed are 
they who have been persecuted for righteousness' 
sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven ; Blessed 
are ye when men shall reproach you and persecute 
you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, 
for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for 



336 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



great is your reward in heaven . for so persecuted 
they the prophets which were before you." And in 
Matt. 10 : 32, 33, we read, " Every one therefore who 
shall confess me before men, him will I confess be- 
fore my Father who is in heaven. But whosoever 
shall deny me before men, him will I also deny be- 
fore my Father who is in heaven." The Greek word 
here rendered confess, signifies to hold the same lan- 
guage, to be of the same opinion with, to agree with, 
to assent to, to acknowledge, etc. So that the dec- 
laration seems to amount to the promise that Jesus 
will confess us before the Father for what we are, 
and what we have said and done. He will not con- 
fess us as one of the little flock, if we are not so ; 
but if we have confessed him as the Son of God, he 
will admit it before the Father. But if we have only 
confessed him before our fellow-men as the son of 
Joseph and the purest of men, etc., we cannot ex- 
pect him to profess before the Father that we have 
done anything different. Jesus will do us all justice, 
and give us full credit for just what we are, and our 
reward will correspond with our works. Therefore 
Paul says, " Faithful is the saying : For if we died 
with him, we shall also live with him ; if we endure, 
we shall also reign with him ; if we shall deny him, 
he also will deny us , if we are faithless, he abicleth 
faithful ; for he cannot deny himself." 

Please remember Paul tells us that" every Scripture 
inspired of God is profitable for teaching, for reproof, 
for correction, for instruction, which is in righteous- 
ness, that the man of God may be complete, fur- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



337 



nished completely unto every good work," 2 Tim. 
3 : 16, 17, Therefore, let no one fear to receive the 
truths contained in the following, as they evidently 
show that God's infinite and undying love extends 
to, and embraces others besides the little flock, the 
elect. 

I will first give those passages applicable to be- 
lievers in general. " And as Moses lifted up the ser- 
pent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man 
be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him may 
have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that 
He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever be- 
lieveth in him should not perish, but have eternal 
life. For God sent not the Son into the world to 
judge the world, but that the world should be saved 
through him. He that believeth on him is not 
judged ; he that believeth not, has been judged al- 
ready, because he hath not believed on the name of 
the only begotten Son of God," John 3 : 14-18. 
" Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my 
word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath eter- 
nal life, and cometh not into judgment, but hath 
passed out of death into life. Verily, verily, I say 
unto you, the hour cometh, and now is, when the 
dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and 
they that hear shall live," John 5 : 24, 25. 

He that believeth in the Son hath eternal life ; 
but he that believeth not, (or obeyeth not), the 
wrath of God abideth on him, John 3 : 36. For this 
is the will of my Father, that every one that behold- 
eth the Son and believeth on him should have eter- 



338 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



nal life, and that I should raise him up at the last 
day. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that be- 
lieveth hath eternal life, John 6 : 40, 47. 

And here follow very appropriately the words of 
Jesus to Thomas : Because thou hast seen me, thou 
hast believed ; blessed are they that have not seen, 
and yet have believed, John 20 : 29 : for the latter 
portion is particularly in our favor. See 11 : 25. 
And in reply to the jailor, we hear Paul and Silas 
saying, " Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt 
be saved, thou and thy house," Acts 16 : 31. 

Listen again to Paul, " The word is nigh thee, in 
thy mouth; and in thy heart, that is, the word of 
faith which we preach ; that if thou confess with thy 
mouth Jesus as Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart 
that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be 
saved ; for with the heart man believeth unto right- 
eousness ; and with the mouth confession is made 
unto salvation. For the Scripture says, whosoever 
believeth on him shall not be put to shame, Rom. 10 : 
8-13. 

But what does Paul say in regard to believing and 
confessing Jesus ? That Jesus is Lord ; not simply 
the best and wisest man that ever walked the earth. 
In truth, you must believe that Jesus was what he 
himself taught he was — in his spiritual nature, or 
part, God , and in his fleshly part, or nature, man, 
and thus was the Son of God, and also the Son of 
man, and was thus the only man begotten by the Fa- 
ther, but was appointed to bring many sons unto 
glory, even they who are begotten by the word of 
truth, Jesus being the way, the truth, and the life. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



339 



And ill this connection, I again call attention to 
Acts 15 : 14-18, where James tells us that God is now 
taking out from among the Gentiles " a people for 
his name," and that afterwards he " will build again 
the tabernacle of David * * * that the residue of 
men may seek after the Lord." Now who are the 
residue but those who now, while God is taking out 
a people for his name, fail to accept Christ and have 
him formed in them the hope of glory? 

And in writing to the Romans, respecting the 
Jews, and their relative condition to the Gentiles, 
Rom. 11, Paul says, verses 25, 26, "For I would not 
brethren, have you ignorant of this mystery, lest ye 
be wise in your own conceits, that a hardening in 
part hath befallen Israel, until the fulness of the 
Gentiles be come in ; and so all Israel shall be saved, 
etc. * * * For as ye in times past were disobedi- 
ent unto God, but have now obtained mercy by their 
disobedience, even so have those also now been dis- 
obedient, that by your mercy, they may also obtain 
mercy. For God has shut up all, (or them all), in 
disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all, 
(or them all)," In the old Version it reads, — " For 
God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he 
might have mercy upon all." In the late Version it 
reads — For God hath shut up all unto disobedience, 
that he might have mercy upon all. Disobedience 
is equally as correct a rendering as unbelief. But 
the most important question is, whether Paul says 
that God hath shut up all in unbelief, that he might 
have mercy upon all of natural Israel, or upon 



840 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



all mankind. Be that as it may, we have an unques- 
tionable right to ask, if God extends his mercy to all 
Israel, why should he not extend the same mercy to 
all mankind? And as Paul tells us that all of nat- 
ural Israel shall finally be saved, we have an unques- 
tionable right to ask, why should not all the rest of 
mankind finally have a similar salvation ? But I am 
not contending for the salvation of all men, but the 
final salvation of believers who do not attain to the 
resurrection from among the dead, and shall proceed 
to quote Scripture to fully establish that position. 
But if the teachings of Jesus and his chosen apos- 
tles establish more by presenting a greater scope of 
God's mercy and love, no one has the least right to 
complain. 

In John 12 : 47, we read, " And if any man hear 
my sayings, and keep them not, I judge him not ; for 
I came not to judge the world, but to save the 
world." 

Now will Jesus accomplish the purpose for which 
he came, or will he not ? or will he only accomplish 
a part by saving the elect, the very few, the little 
flock? 

Here follows some testimony from the two apos- 
tles, John and Paul. John says, " And if any man 
sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus 
Christ, the righteous ; and he is the propitiation, 
(or expiation) for our sins, and not for ours only, but 
also for the whole world," John 2 : 1, 2. This don't 
read as if John believed that Christ only redeemed 
the elect. And Paul says, " For to this end we la- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



341 



bor and strive, because we have our hope set upon 
the living God who is the Saviour of all men, espec- 
ially of them who believe," 1 Tim. 4 : 10, Yes, they 
who now believe in Christ have a special salvation. 
But here follows a remarkably positive, clear and 
comprehensive declaration from the same apostle, or 
rather him and Timothy, as follows : " But all things 
are of God, who reconciled us unto himself through 
Christ, and gave unto us the ministry of reconcilia- 
tion ; to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the 
world unto himself, not imputing unto them their 
trespasses, and having committed unto us the word 
of reconciliation, 2 Cor. 5 : 18, 19. Will God ac- 
complish this work or will he not? Please suspend 
you creeds a few moments while I offer a few sug- 
gestions. 

When Paul says that God " reconciled us unto 
himself through Christ," who does he mean by us ? 
Himself, Timothy and others like them. They had 
yielded to God in humble submission, and were de- 
voted disciples of Jesus, doing the will of the Fa- 
ther, and thus showed their reconciliation to him. 
God acted in, and through Christ reconciling the 
word unto himself, while Christ remained here in 
the flesh, he being the light of the world ; but when 
he returned to the Father from whence he came, 
then the church, the espoused bride and body of 
Christ, took the place of her Lord on earth, in the 
great work of reconciling the world to God. Will 
any one deny this ? Very well, if you don't deny it, 
then admit it. But whether you admit it, or not, 



342 HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Paul plainly tells you it is so, when he says, " and 
gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation." If any 
one says that it is only the clergy that are engaged, or 
called to this work, then let him turn and read 1 Cor. 
12 andEph. 4 : 1-16, and he may soon see that every 
member of the body of Christ is needed for the great 
work : " And that the eye cannot say to the hand, I have 
no need of thee," etc., etc. Then at the present 
time, as well as in Paul's time, the church, with all 
true under-shepherds as leaders, is engaged in recon- 
ciling the world unto God. Reader, I again ask you 
— Will God accomplish the work of reconciling the 
world to himself, or will He not? 

But God has a systematic order in carrying forward 
this glorious work, which the creed-bound and creed- 
blinded sectarians of the day wholly fail to perceive, 
as they have done in the past ; and as they always 
will, while they hug their creeds to their breasts. 
The Universalist says, that God will save all men ; 
but I have never heard one tell us how he will accom- 
plish it. The Arminian says that God most earnestly 
and with that infinite love towards all his creatures 
which Diety alone can experience, desires to fully ac- 
complish the great work for which he gave his beloved 
Son, viz : to save the world, but He is not able to ac- 
complish it, and that thus billions upon billions go 
down to an eternal hell ; but that the time is com- 
ing when our Creator will finally destroy the power 
of Satan to effect evil, and save what might quite 
properly be termed the last and small end of the world. 
But the Calvinist in his imaginary wisdom, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



343 



what he considers the most profound theology, tells 
us, with much circumlocution, in order to avoid 
shocking the best and finest feelings of our nature, 
that God is fully able to save all, but in his inscruta- 
ble wisdom and incomprehensible love and mercy, 
has decided, or did decide from the beginning, to 
save from an eternal hell of suffering and torment 
but a very small number of his own offspring, and 
left all others to eternal darkness, wretchedness and 
despair. 

But God not only was in Christ reconciling the 
world unto himself, but he is yet in Christ doing 
the same work in and through the church, Christ's 
body. Thus Jesus says to all of his true followers, 
" I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abid- 
eth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much 
fruit ; for apart from me ye can do nothing. In that 
day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in 
me, and I in you," John 14 : 20. 15 : 5. And thus 
John says, " Because as He is, so are we in this 
world," 1 John 4 : 17. Therefore Jesus says to all 
of his true disciples, " Ye are the salt of the earth. 
Ye are the light of the world," Matt. 5 : 13, 14. 
But said of himself, " While I am in the world, I am 
the light of the world." Thus we see that when Je- 
sus left the world, the work of reconciling the world 
to God devolved upon the church, the elect of 
Christ. 

But mark, Paul not only says, 2 Cor. 5 : 19, That 
God was in Christ reconciling the world to him- 
self, but adds, " Not imputing unto them their tres- 



344 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



passes." To say the least, this last declaration looks 
very hopeful for man : for how can he be condemned 
for sins which are not imputed to him ? Jesus says, 
" If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had 
not had sin. If I had not done among them the works 
which none other did, they had not had sin," John 
15 : 22, 24. And then speaking of the Holy 
Spirit and his office, John 16 : 7-11" And when he is 
come he will convince, or convict, the world of sin, 
and of righteousness, and of judgment." And then 
adds, " of sin because they believe not on me." 
Now the point is, will God deal more severely 
with the Gentiles than with the Jews ? For 
Paul tells us that finally all Israel shall be 
saved ; and Jesus tells us that they would not 
have had their sins imputed unto them if they 
had believed in him ; and also tells us that 
the time is coming when they shall say of him, 
" Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord," 
Matt. 23 : 39. And any one that can thus welcome 
the Redeemer will certainly be saved. Again Jesus 
says, " And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will 
draw all men unto myself," John 12 : 32 ; and in 6 : 
37, he tells us, " And him that cometh to me, I will 
in no wise cast off." Again, we are told by both 
Peter and Paul, that Whosoever shall call upon the 
name of the Lord shall be saved, Acts 2 : 21 and 
Rom. 10 : 13. But mark well, that the gospel does 
not teach us that all such shall become heirs of God, 
the Father, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, the 
first born of many brethren. To be finally saved is 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



345 



one thing, but to be found worthy of a joint inher- 
itance with Christ of " all things " is so much higher 
and greater, and so glorious, that Paul tells us that 
the human mind cannot conceive of those things 
which God has prepared for them who love him. Je- 
sus gives us an illustration of it in the case oi the 
Prodigal. Upon his return to his father, he was not 
only saved but received joyfully and affectionately. 
But where was his inheritance ? He had none except 
a father's love— that remained. What said the father 
to the obedient and faithful son ? — " All that I have 
is thine," Luke 15. Again Jesus exhorts us who 
profess his name to lay up our treasures in heaven, 
etc., that we may have something there to inherit. 
But the preachers of our day seem to be almost 
blind and deaf to the great distinction made by the 
Saviour and his apostles between simple salvation, 
or final salvation, and the inheritance of the over- 
comers, the saints of God, them who have indeed laid up 
their treasures in heaven. The great aim and object 
of the clergy at present, seem to be, to keep people 
from going to hell, and, in some way, to get them in- 
to what they call heaven. And some years ago I 
wondered why the ministers did not preach upon 
Christians laying up treasures in heaven ; but I have 
ceased to wonder. 

But let us turn to Rom. 5 : 19-21, and we read, 
"For as through the one man's disobedience, 
[Adam's], the many were made sinners, even so 
through the obedience of the one, [Christ], shall 
the many be made righteous. And the law came in 



346 HEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



beside, that the offence might abound ; but where 
sin abounded, grace did abound more exceedingly, 
that as sin reigned in death, even so might grace 
reign through righteousness unto eternal life through 
Jesus Christ our Lord." Mark that Paul says 
eternal liie, not natural life. Then please read the 
following — " What then ? shall we sin because we 
are not under law, but under grace ? God forbid. 
Know ye not that to whom ye present yourselves as 
servants unto obedience, his servants ye are whom 
ye obey, whether of sin unto death, or of obedience 
unto righteousness ? * * * * For the wages of sin 
is death ; but the free gift of God is eternal life in 
Christ Jesus our Lord," verses 15, 16, 23. Let the 
reader notice, and also consider that Paul here says, 
The free gift of God, not the conditional gift of 
God, is eternal life in Christ Jesus ; not a temporal 
life — a free gift, not a conditional gift. 

If verses 19 and 21 were taken alone one might 
readily think he saw the doctrine of universal salva- 
tion taught by the apostle ; but verses 15, 16 and 23 
put a very different phase upon the question : for the 
apostle tells us the wages of sin is death, and that if 
we yield ourselves obedient servants of sin we shall 
die. And the word here rendered servant, may very 
correctly be rendered slave, or bond-servant. And 
please notice that Paul is here talking to believers, 
and tells them they will die if they continue in sin, 
or continue to sin. Then what is this death referred 
to by the apostle, as they had believed in Christ and 
thus had spiritual life ? Or what death is this to 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 347 



which the apostle refers? It is spiritual death. 
Reader, beware of that death ! 

In Luke 17 : 21, Jesus tells us that the kingdom 
of God is within us, or in the midst of us. Again, in 
Matt. 13, in his explanation of the parables of the 
wheat and tares, and of the net cast into the sea 
which gathered in every kind of fish both good and 
bad, he first tells us that the field, in which both the 
wheat, the good seed, and also the tares, Satan's lies, 
are sown, is the world, the first being sown by the 
Son of man, and the latter by the devil. The good 
seed sown is the gospel, and the gospel is preached in 
the world, the field ; so the world is not the king- 
dom mentioned by Jesus. Then what is the king- 
dom ? It is the church in the world, in keeping 
with Christ's words to the Pharisees — The kingdom 
of God is in the midst of you. Then fix it in your 
mind, that, at present, the church militant, so called, 
is the kingdom referred to. The Greek word ren- 
dered seed in verse 38, can with equal propriety be 
rendered progeny, or offspring, or yield,; therefore, 
it may be read, The good progeny are the sons of 
the kingdom : and the tares, (produced), are the 
sons of the evil one ; the tares mentioned in verse 
38 being the crop grown. Now from verse 36 to 43, 
Jesus speaks of the harvest, and explains it to sig- 
nify his dealings with his church at the end of the 
age, not at the end of the world ; for after Jesus tells 
us that "the field is the world," the word xocrjuoz, 
world, is not again used, but aetov, age. Therefore, 
Jesus tells us that at the end of the age he will send 



348 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



forth his angels to gather out of his kingdom, the 
church, every thing that is evil, and them who do 
evil, and promote evil, and that they shall be pun- 
ished, and so severely punished for their hypocrisy 
and wickedness, that there shall indeed be weeping 
and gnashing of teeth. But this does not represent 
the judgment of the world. Read from verse 24 to 
51, and you may readily perceive that it is the king- 
dom of heaven which Jesus is describing; that is, 
the kingdom of heaven, or that part of it which is on 
the earth, — for in both cases he commences, The king- 
dom of heaven is like, etc. Thus in the parable of the 
net, he says, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like 
unto a net, [Gr. dragnet,] which was cast into the 
sea, and gathered of every kind, which when it was 
filled, they drew up on the beach ; and they sat down 
and gathered the good into vessels, but the bad they 
cast away — so shall it be at the end of the age," etc. 
Now here one may readily see, if he will consider, 
that the sea in this parable represents the world, that 
is, all mankind, and the dragnet represents the gos- 
pel, and with its contents represents the church, for 
through the instrumentality of the gospel men are 
gathered in from the world into the church, as fish, 
by a net, are gathered in from the sea. And the 
reader will perceive that the same separation of the 
righteous from the wicked takes place, and the same 
punishment, or suffering follows, as in the other par- 
able. And when this separation has taken place, 
" Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in 
the kingdom of their Father." Then will they enter 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



349 



upon the glory and inherit the kingdom prepared for 
them from the foundation of the world. 

Notice, Jesus says all this takes place at the con- 
summation of this age. Then, of course, commences 
another age, when the elect church, shining forth in 
the glory of God, as does the sun in the natural 
world with that brilliancy which we cannot look 
upon with the naked eye, enters upon that work of 
mercy and love to which Paul refers, when he says, 
" For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth 
for the revealing, [or un vailing], of the sons of God. 
For the creation was subjected to vanity, [sin and 
its consequences], not willingly, but through him 
subjecting it in hope, that, [or because] also the cre- 
ation itself shall be delivered from the bondage of 
corruption into the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God. For we know that all the creation 
groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 
And not not only so, but ourselves also who have 
the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan 
within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, the re- 
demption of our body." Rom. 8 : 19-23. 

But I will not ask the reader to rely solely upon 
my views respecting Paul's language in Rom. 8, from 
verse 18 to 24, but refer him to S chaff's comments 
upon this chapter, where we find that the distin- 
guished author concludes, after quoting pro and con 
from others' views, that the Greek word ztcocz, here 
rendered creation, here signifies the whole creation, 
rational as well as irrational, contrasted with the 
new creation in Christ, and in the regeneration. 



350 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Says he, — " The children of God appear on one side, 
as the first-fruits of the new creation, and the re- 
maining creatures, on the other, as consciously long- 
ing after the same renewal. The whole creation 
then looks forward to redemption, — all natural birth 
to the new birth ; as all that is created." And then 
he remarks that Olshausen aptly says : " Paul con- 
trasts Christ and the new creation called forth by 
Him, to all the old creation together, with the unre- 
generate man, as the flower of this creation. The 
whole of this creation has one life in itself, and this 
is yearning for redemption from the bonds which 
hold it, and hinder its glorification. This one yearn- 
ing has forms different only according to the differ- 
ent degrees of life, and is naturally stronger in unre- 
generate men than in plants and animals : in them 
the creation has, as it were, its mouth, by which it 
can give vent to its collective feeling. Yet the most 
of these men know not what the yearning and seek- 
ing in them properly mean ; they understand not the 
language of the Spirit in them : nay, they suppress 
it often, through it is meanwhile audible in their 
hearts; and what they do not understand them- 
selves, God understands, who listens even to prayers 
not understood. The old creation, therefore, like an 
impregnate mother, [comp. verse 23], that bears a 
new world in her womb — a life which is not herself, 
neither springs from her, but by the overmastering 
power which dwells in it, draws her life with which 
it is connected on and into itself, and changes it into 
its nature, so that the birth, (the completion of the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



351 



new world), is the mother's death,- (the sinking of 
the old)." 

Schaff himself coincides with Olshansen, and says 
the reasons given by the other authors for excluding 
humanity, have but little weight when set against 
those of Olshausen, and that the burden of proof 
rests upon them who attempt it, as man is the head 
of the creation to which they apply xucfiz; not 
merely as the crowning work of the creating agency 
which brought it into existence, but as the occasion 
of its present groaning condition ; and that it seems 
arbitrary to sunder him from it in the present case. 
See Schaff's Com. on Rom. 8. 

Now suffer me to ask if it would not be more in 
keeping with reason to include man in the meaning 
of the word xreag^ creation, and exclude every thing 
else, both animate and inanimate ? Christians, did you 
not, before you were regenerated, yearn for something 
you did not possess ? Very well, are there not now 
some among the unregenerated who will be regener- 
ated? and won't you allow them the same privilege 
of yearning which you had, and yet have — the 
privilege of desiring and groaning for a higher and 
better state ? The advocates of Satan's theory of 
evolution are willing to trace their origin from the 
lowest of the animal species, and acknowledge that 
their great grandfather was a monkey with baboons 
and poodle-dogs for aunts and cousins, in order to 
overthrow the Mosaic and biblical account of man's 
creation by God in his likeness, and thus avoid their 
responsibility to their Creator, who not only formed 



352 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



man as the highest type and crowning work of his 
creation, but also gave him dominion and power over 
all other terrestrial creatures. But while infidels 
and atheists start so low down with man's history 
and origin, shall Christians run to the other extreme 
by deriving man's origin directly from God, his 
Maker, and then degrade all of the human family, 
but the few elect, far beneath the lowest reptile that 
crawls upon the earth, by plunging him down, down 
into an eternal hell there to sink lower and lower — 
how long ? — through an endless eternity. Christian, 
will you seek to do this by turning every thing in 
God's word, where a doubt or question can be raised, 
against our Maker's mercy and love, yes, and justice, 
also, and thus against your own fellow creatures ? 
Yes, why will you so construe passages of Scripture 
as to turn them against your fellow-man instead of in his 
favor ? If you are truly one of the elect, then you 
were so chosen, as you yourself hold, before the 
foundation of the world, and your fellow-creature 
was left at the same time you were chosen, or elected 
— and then, neither of you had done any good or 
evil, no more than had Jacob or Esau before they 
were born ; and yet Paul tells us plainly that Jacob 
was elected before their birth, and says that neither 
of them had done any good or evil, especially to 
show us distinctly and beyond cavil, that election 
with God, or God's election, is determined before a 
man is born, and this being the case, election does 
not turn upon the question of a man's having sinned. 
Now if we are of the elect being chosen in Christ 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



353 



before the foundation of the world by the special fa- 
vor of God, and not from any merit of our own, 
should we not earnestly and carefully seek some way 
of escape and deliverance for those of our fellow- 
creatures whom the Father left at the very same time 
He elected us ; instead of blocking up and barricading 
every avenue of escape by construing God's word 
against them in every case ? It is downright folly 
to talk of a man's being excluded by the Almighty 
from the number of the elect, thousands of years be- 
fore he was born, and then say that he was then ex- 
cluded, or has since been excluded from the elect by 
reason of his sins. It is folly to teach and talk 
about God's eternal purposes, and that means un- 
changeable purposes, and then talk about those pur- 
poses changing, or being changed. Can I change one 
of God's purposes by all the wickedness I can per- 
form, or all the righteous acts I can do ? No. Then 
can billions of men do so ? No more than one. 
Now brother, if you was not elected before you were 
born, as was Jacob, can you convert yourself into 
one of the elect ? Or if you were born Esau, can 
you convert yourself into Jacob ? Again, will God 
do either one, or the other ? Then is it not folly to 
talk about a person's being rejected, or left out from 
among the elect because of his sins, if he was really 
rejected, or so left out before he was born, or even be- 
fore the foundation of the world ? Certainly, it is 
the most downright folly ; that is, if man is really 
endowed with reasoning faculties sufficient to com- 
prehend anything. If he is not so endowed, then 



354 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



he is at liberty, like the beasts, to give all theology 
to the winds, and live and die like them. Now for 
the common good, I ask Calvinists especially, and all 
others in general, to honestly and decidedly answer 
this question. If God did from the beginning elect 
a portion of the human race to be saved, and aban- 
doned the rest of mankind to drift into an eternal 
hell, there to sink lower and lower, deeper and 
deeper, into degradation and misery, what power can 
save them ? and is not the lot of the beast far prefer- 
able to theirs ? It is folly to talk about any man's 
being exalted to heaven and becoming an heir of 
God, and a joint-heir with Jesus Christ, if he has 
not been numbered with the elect ; for Jesus plainly 
tells us that no man can come to him unless the Fa- 
ther draw him, and God don't draw them to Jesus, 
at present, whom he has temporarily abandoned ; 
therefore, am I not doing such a man injustice, I 
mean a non-elect person, when I sa} 7 he can now 
come to Jesus if he wishes to, and become a joint 
heir with Christ? Does such a person now desire to 
come ? Can he have that desire unless God by the 
operation of the Holy Spirit bestow it upon him ? 
John tells us that no man can say that Jesus is the 
Christ but by the aid of the Spirit. And certainly if 
a man don't believe in Christ, he can have no desire 
for him. An unregenerate man desires something 
better than what he has, but it is an indefinite some- 
thing ; but when he is born from above, then he tells 
you that he has found that indefinite something in 
his Saviour ; and thus we hear living Christians say 
that " Jesus is their all and in all," 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 355 



But because a person is a non-elect, lias lie no 
rights at all which the elect "are bound to respect"? 
Must he even be shoved out of creation, (treaty), in 
order to make out a case against him ? Must the 
language of Paul, yes, that of the whole Bible, be so 
construed, that the non-elect may not only be pushed 
out of xrcacQy but finally shut out of heaven, that 
they may sink down into an eternal hell, — into cease- 
less woe ? Long-headed theologians, both Calvinis- 
tic and Arminian, percieve that very much depends 
upon the construction, or rendering given to the 
word Tiicacq in Rom. 8 ; therefore, there has been a 
protracted contest over it. Kziatc, certainly means 
creation : and the question then arises whether Paul, 
in the word creation, does, or does not embrace all 
mankind of every generation, except when from the 
context it plainly appears that the elect, (the regen- 
erate), are excluded ; or in other words, whether the 
word creation includes any portion of mankind. 
And now, that we may have it before us, I give 
Paul's words from verse 18 to 23 inclusive. 

(18) . For I reckon that the sufferings of this pres- 
ent time are not worthy to be compared with the 
glory which shall be revealed in us. 

(19) For the earnest expectation of the creation 
is waiting for the revelation of the sons of God ; 

(20) for the creation was not willingly made sub- 
ject to vanity, [that is, to sin and its consequences,] 
but by him subjecting it in hope ; (21), because the 
creation itself shall be delivered from the bondage of 
corruption into the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God. 



356 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



(22) For we know that the whole creation, (or 
all the creation), groaneth together and travaileth 
together in pain until now, (23) and not only they, 
but even we ourselves, who have the first fruits of 
the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves 
waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our 
body. 

Now let the reader remember, and not for a mo- 
ment forget, that the church holds and teaches that 
of all terrestrial beings, man alone is immortal, 
whether he be regenerate, or unregenerate, — a saint, 
or a sinner, and that all other creatures, when they 
die, perish, and live no more. Hold fast to this 
while we consider Paul's language. Then all the 
beasts, reptiles, insects, etc., of Paul's time are dead, 
and can live no more. But theologians tell us that 
all the animals, reptiles, insects etc., such as oxen, 
snakes, tadpoles and gn ats of Paul's time, and 
which are now dead, never to live again, were then 
groaning, travailing in pain, and waiting for the 
manifestation of the sons of God. Now as there is 
no resurrection of any of God's creatures except 
man, let them tell us of what benefit to those crea- 
tures will there ever be from all their groanings, tra- 
vailings and waiting. When the sons of God are 
revealed, it cannot in the least benefit any creature 
sleeping in the dust, or returned to dust as a part 
thereof. But human beings will then be in exis- 
tance, alive, and thus will be capable of being bene- 
fited by such revelation ; but certainly, that which, 
or those creatures which live no more after death, 
cannot be capable of anything. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



35T 



Some think Darwin unkind in deriving our origin 
from the lower order of creatures. But which is the 
most unkind, Darwin's theory which starts man 
very low down to be sure, yet allows him a place 
in creation, with an upward plane, or that theory 
which excludes man, except the few elect, from all 
aspirations or desire for anything higher, purer, or 
elevating, — gives all such aspirations and desires to 
every lower order of creatures, — places man below 
them, and finally leaves him in eternal perdition and 
wretchedness ? 

Please remember that we are standing upon the 
pure doctrine of, election — election made or perfected 
before the foundation of the world — the very same 
kind described by both Peter and Paul ; but mark 
you, our kind of election is entirely seperate and 
apart from Calvanistic reprobation. 

Please remember that when Paul wrote the Scrip- 
ture under consideration, conversions were continu- 
ally taking place both among the Gentiles and the 
Jews, and consequently there were then people 
among the unconverted, who were afterwards con- 
verted, who could not then be included, (as they 
were not then christians), among them whom Paul 
includes, when he says (v. 23), Even we ourselves, 
who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we our- 
selves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adop- 
tion, the redemption of our body. In verse 23, Paul 
includes only living Christians, in the words "we 
ourselves." Now if we exclude the then uncon- 
verted class just mentioned from Paul's xrcac^ 



358 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



where shall we place them ? Paul could not include 
them, until they were converted, among them who had 
" the first fruits of the Spirit," and if you exclude 
them from Paul's creation (xr^c), please tell me 
where in our heavenly Father's entire universe they 
did have a place or any standing whatever ? Suffer 
me in all kindness, to ask, whether a man really 
knows what spirit he is of, when he will shove a fel- 
low creature off the edge of creation, in order to 
maintain the theory that God, his Creator, has des- 
tined him, (and that from eternity, or the founda- 
tion of the world), to an eternal hell of suffering ? 
I fully believe in maintaining the truth, and stand- 
ing firmly upon the truth, but I don't believe the 
truth needs any such desperate remedies to pre- 
vent its being overthrown. Falsehood and error 
frequently demand such frantic efforts. 

Now notice the dread and danger of so called or- 
thodoxy lies in the language of verse 21, reading, — 
" Because, the creation (xr^c) itself shall also be 
delivered from the bondage of corruption into the 
freedom of the glory of the children of God." 

Orthodox* theologians don't object to Paul's say- 
ing that the unconverted groan, or yearn, as well as 
toads, lizards, crocodiles, and every thing else, ani- 
mate and inanimate ; but they strenuously object to 
his saying, that man shall ever be delivered from the 
bondage of corruption, etc. If they once allow man 
to once have a standing in Paul's xnac^ (creation), 

* The words orthodox and orthodoxy are used as applicable to 
both Arminians and Calvinists, in this volume. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



359 



either as waiting, groaning, or in any other condition 
or character, then they would with that admission of 
man, also " admit away their whole case ; " for when 
the nnregenerated man has the least standing or 
privilege in y.zcocz, even so much as to place his 
foot, or to utter one groan, then he is included in 
the promise of verse 21, and must with the creation 
of which he is allowed to be a part, " be delivered 
from the bondage of corruption into the freedom of 
the glory of the children of God "; and please notice 
that will be very much different from hell eternal. 
Therefore, let the reader remember the question at 
issue, viz., — will the non-elect, the present nnregen- 
erated, be finally delivered from the bondage of cor- 
ruption into the freedom of the glory of the children 
of God?. 

One may very coolly say, I am of the elect, — enjoy 
his luxurious earthly home, his beautifully uphol- 
stered pew in church, his lovely wife, highly accom- 
plished children, every other earthly enjoyment, im- 
agine himself ministered to by angels, and wafted 
along continually towards heaven, (which he is in no 
hurry to reach), and yet feel so little interest in the 
eternal welfare of the rest of mankind, and have so 
little love for, and take so little interest in the truth 
as it is in Christ, the gospel, that he does not even 
investigate in order to ascertain what provision God 
has made for the rest of mankind except the few 
elect among whom he numbers himself. And in addi- 
tion to all that, there is another class who don't 
want any one else to investigate the question. But 



360 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



we will proceed: and let us thank God that no man 
can prevent ns. 

Now in order to plainly show what this word xrtoic, 
creation, means and includes, I select the first three 
places where it occurs in the Testament. First, Mark 
10 : 6, 7; " But from the beginning of the creation, 
male and female made he them. For this cause shall 
a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave unto 
his wife &c, see 13 : 19 also. But in Mark 16 : 15 
the language of our Lord is absolutely conclusive 
upon the question whether the un regenerate are in- 
cluded in the word xtcgcq ; where he says to his dis- 
ciples, the eleven, " Go ye into all the world, map.oz, 
and preach the gospel to the whole creation, (tzo.gtj 
tyj xrtoec, the whole creation). In this instance let 
the reader remember that Jesus was addressing them 
who were to preach the gospel, the regenerated, the 
eleven apostles ; therefore, the term, " the whole cre- 
ation " especially, and I think, we may say, exclu- 
sively embraced the unconverted. For it was to 
the unconverted, and to them only, that Jesus di- 
rected his apostles to preach the gospel, that is, to 
the unregenerated. Read from verse 14, and you 
will perceive that Jesus was only addressing the 
eleven apostles, and no others ; therefore, none but 
the human family were included in the phrase, the 
whole creation. This is just precisely such a case as 
that of Rom. 8. Here Jesus directs his regenerated 
apostles to preach the gospel to the rest of mankind, 
the unregenerated human family ; and of course, to 
nobody, nor nothing else. There Paul says, verse 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



361 



22. the whole creation, {rzaaa jy y-cocz), groaneth and 
travaileth together in pain until now. The Greek 
words in both sentences are the same, only in differ- 
ent cases. Do our opponents now want to also give 
the preaching of the gospel exclusively to horses, 
dogs, bats, owls, and all the lower order of beings ? 
Why should they not contend that the apostles were 
directed to preach the gospel to them instead of men 
as the same Greeek words, (rracra r t 7-io:z) are used in 
both instances. 

I will here add that this word y->o:z is found in 
Mark 10 : 6. 13 : 19. 16 : 15. Rom. 1 : 20, 25. 8 : 
19, 20. 21. 22. 39. 2 Cor. 5 : IT. Gal. 6 : 15. Col. 1 : 
15, 23. Heb. 4 : 13. 9 : 11. 1 Peter 2 : 13. 2 Peter 

3 : 4. Rev. 3 : 14 ; and that it is properly rendered 
creation, although the reader will sometimes find it 
rendered creature. But the reader may observe from 
the context that the word creature almost invariably 
refers to man. and not to beast. But y-coua more 
properly means creature : and that is found in 1 Tim. 

4 : 4. James 1 : 18. Rev. 5 : 13. 8 : 9. 

And here I ought to remark that having read, 
without the least prejudice, the remarks of various 
authors pro and con, and having carefully considered 
the various passages where matQ occurs, I have 
concluded that it would be far more correct to ex- 
clude all other creatures from the meaning and 
scope of the word in Rom. 8 : 18-24, than to exclude 
man. and that all others are excluded. 

Having clearly established the point that Paul in 
the last mentioned verses did include man equally as 



362 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



much as did Jesus, when he said to his apostles, Go 
into all the world, (xo<t//oc), and preach the gospel to 
the whole creation, (xzeots), we will now proceed to 
ascertain what Paul meant by saying, Because the 
creation itself, (aurrj Tj xr^c), shall also be delivered 
from the bondage of corruption into the liberty, (or 
freedom), of the glory of the children of God. But 
in order to do this, we must first understand what 
Paul means by the phrase, " liberty of the glory," 
etc. Why doesn't he say, into the glory of the chil- 
dren of God, instead of saying, " into the liberty of 
the glory?" EXeudepca, freedom, liberty, is the word 
used by Paul ; and dogyj means glory ; and the 
phrase, elsodeptav r^c do^q means the liberty of the 
glory. Now let us turn to some passages where Paul 
uses this word e?,eodepca when he employs it to ex- 
press the present spiritual standing, or state of the 
children of God ; and we will thus ascertain what he 
means by the liberty, or freedom, of the glory of the 
children of God. We find this Greek word thus 
used by Paul in the following passages : 1 Cor. 10 : 
29. 2 Cor. 3 : 17. Gal. 5 : 1, 13. 2 : 4, as well as in 
Rom. 8. And we also find the word used by Peter 
and James as follows : 1 Peter 2 : 16. 2 Peter 2 : 19. 
Jas. 1 : 25. 2 : 12. 

In 2 Cor. 3 : 15-18, speaking of the Hebrews, Paul 
says, " But unto this day, whenever Moses is read, 
[the law], a veil lieth upon their heart. But when- 
soever it shall turn to the Lord, (or a man shall turn 
to the Lord), the veil is taken away. Now the Lord 
is the Spirit ; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, is 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



363 



liberty. But we all with unveiled face, beholding, 
as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord, are transformed 
into the same linage from o-lorv to glory, even as 
from the Lord, the Spirit." Now notice, Paul says 
there is now a veil upon the faces of the Hebrews, 
so they cannot at present look into the mirror, which he 
mentions, that is, their faces are veiled; that is, they 
have not the privilege of believing the gospel; but he 
says of us who are really Christians, that our faces are 
unveiled, and that we thus have the liberty or freedom, 
to behold as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord. This 
is the liberty, or the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God. The Hebrews do not now have that 
u liberty of the glory,*' or that free access to the 
glory, etc. None but the elect have it. Mark, Paul 
says, verse 17, that where the Spirit of the Lord is, 
is that liberty. Then in Gal. 5 : 1, he says to the 
church, not to the unregenerate, " For freedom did 
Christ set us free ; stand fast therefore, and be not 
again entangled in a yoke of bondage." Again in 
verse 13, For ye brethren, were called to freedom ; 
only, use not your freedom for an aid to the flesh, but 
through love serve one another. And Peter says, 
" As free, and not using your freedom for a cloak of 
malice, but as bond-servants of God." And then 
speaking of false teachers, or preachers, he says, 
" For uttering great swelling words of folly, they en- 
tice into the lusts of the flesh, by lasciviousness, 
those who are just escaping from them that live in 
error, promising them liberty, while the) 7 themselves 
are bond-servants of corruption ; for by what a man 



364 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



is overcome, by that is he brought into bondage," 2 
Peter 2 : 18, 19. Please notice, Peter uses this same 
word (#o/?«), corruption, when he speaks of those 
hypocritical teachers being bond-servants of corrup- 
tion, which Paul uses, when he says, "Because the 
creation itself shall be delivered from the bondage of 
corruption into the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God." The false teachers whom Peter men- 
tions, and warns the church against, were in that 
same bondage of corruption from which Paul says 
the creation itself shall be delivered. Were Peter, 
Paul, James, and other true Christians in that bond- 
age ? Far from it. Peter and Paul were both warn- 
ing Christians not to be brought again into bondage, 
the very bondage of corruption from which Christ 
had set them free, and brought them into " the liber- 
ty of the glory " which believers only have. 

And James speaks of this same liberty when he 
says, Jas. 1 : 25, " But he that looketh into the per- 
fect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth," [con- 
tiuueth to look into that mirror], " being not a hear- 
er that forgets, but a doer that worketh, this man 
shall be blessed in his doing." Then in 2 : 12, " So 
speak ye, and so do as men that are to be judged by 
a law of liberty." Liberty is freedom ; therefore, it 
matters not which word is used, as ehudepca em- 
braces both, and they are quite synonymous. 

But what is this bondage of corruption of which 
Paul speaks ? What does the reader consider it to 
be? Is it not the bondage of sin? If, strictly 
speaking, it is not the bondage of sin, it is that 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



365 



bondage which sin brings upon a man ; therefore, it 
may quite correctly be called the bondage of sin. 
Let Jesus and the apostles define it. Notice that the 
following language was addressed to them who had 
believed in the Saviour. 

Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had be- 
lieved him, If ye abide in my word, then are ye truly 
my disciples ; and ye shall know the truth, and the 
truth shall make you free. They answered him, We 
be Abraham's seed, and have never yet been in 
bondage to any man, how sayest thou, Ye shall be 
made free ? Jesus answered them, Verily, Verily, I 
say unto you, Every one that committeth sin is the 
bond-servant of sin, John 8 : 31-35. Notice the last 
remark of the Saviour. And after speaking of 
Christ, his death and resurrection, Paul says, Rom. 
6 : 5, 6, " For if we have become united with him 
by the likeness of his death, we shall be also by the 
likeness of his resurrection ; knowing this, that our 
old man was crucified with him, that the body of 
sin might be done away, so that we should no longer 
be in bondage to sin." Is not this bondage to sin 
mentioned by Paul, the same as the bondage of cor- 
ruption in chap. 8. See also Heb. 2 : 13-15. And 
also 2 Peter 2 : 19, where that apostle says, in speak- 
ing of a certain class of teachers and their dupes, — 
" Promising them liberty, while they themselves are 
bond-servants of corruption ; for by what a man is 
overcome, by that is he brought into bondage, or en- 
slaved. It is sin that corrupts the person who prac- 
tices it, and as we have all sinned, therefore we are 



366 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



under the bondage of sin, or corruption, and need 
deliverance. But every man is corrupted and 
brought into bondage by his own sins, not by those 
of other people. That is proved by the words of 
Peter just quoted. I think my opponents will ad- 
mit that ; but if they won't, the Scriptures teach 
it. But now, how is it with irrational creatures, the 
beasts of the field, the birds of the air and the fish 
of the sea ? Have they sinned ? Are they cor- 
rupted, and thus brought into the bondage of cor- 
ruption of which Jesus and the apostles speak ? 

Thus far in the argument I have admitted that all 
animate and inanimate creation are under the 
"bondage of corruption," or the bondage of sin. I 
now deny it ; and ask my opponents for their proof. 
Let the reader remember that a creature must first 
be in bondage, before he can be delivered from it. 
You cannot deliver a free man from slavery no more 
than you can pull a man out of the water when he 
is not in it. The unregenerated man is the only 
creature under the bondage of corruption. The re- 
generate man is now free from that bondage — in him 
is a new creation ; or, he is a new creation — in 
Christ he is free. And thus, as Paul declares, " If 
any man is in Christ, he is a new creation ; old things 
are passed away, and all things are become new." 
Such a man is in " the liberty of the glory of the 
children of God," but he is not yet in that glory. 
That glory awaits him, as one may readily see from 
verse 18, where the apostle speaks of " the glory 
which shall be revealed " in Christians, not of a 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



367 



glory now possessed. And in verse 19 he speaks of 
the rest of mankind, viz : James' " residue of men," 
(Acts 15), waiting for the revelation of this glory 
which then will rest upon the children of God, 
which is the glory Jesus has given all his true fol- 
lowers, )as he says in John 17 : 20-23), " that the 
world may believe." Please remember that in this 
very chapter Jesus says of his disciples that they 
are not of the world, even as he was not of the 
world (xo(juo~) — that is, he regarded them as really 
forming no part of it, because he had separated them 
from it. So it is with all true disciples of Jesus in 
every generation : therefore, so it was in J ames' and 
and Paul's time. Then let the reader notice that the 
word world, xocruo^, as used by Jesus in John 17 : 
14, 15, 18, 21, 23, and creation (xzcacz) used by Paul 
in Rom. 8 : 18-23, and the phrase "the residue of 
men " used by James, Acts 15 : 17, all mean the 
same, and that they all refer to men, and to men only. 

After carefully comparing scripture with scrip- 
ture by such light of the Holy Spirit as God has be- 
stowed upon me, I cannot but regard the theory that 
Paul intended to, or rather did exclude the human 
race when he used the word creation, as a natural 
fruit of man's religious creeds, and as a practical 
demonstration of the fact that one error leads into 
another. You cannot reconcile such a theory with 
either the teachings of Jesus or the apostles, nor 
with yuur own reason. While on the contrary, when 
such teachings are correctly understood, they sup- 
port the theory, or palpable fact, that the human 



3(38 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



family were included by him. Let no one be 
troubled with the thought that men have died, — 
yes, that many generations have passed away since 
Paul's time ; but remember that Jesus tells us that 
" all live unto God," and that " God is not a God of 
the dead, but of the living," saying, " I am the God 
of Abraham, of Isaac and Jacob." The gates of 
death no more interfere with the will of God, nor so 
much, as does the most transparent glass with the 
natural vision. And there was much truth in the 
remark of a worthy citizen and an able statesman at 
the point of death, when in reply to a question, he 
said, — " I shall be in God's hands there, as I have 
been here." But that fact does not in the least, ex- 
cuse, or exempt any one from improving every talent 
which God has bestowed upon him, and thus glorify- 
ing him here on earth by bearing fruit ; and no one 
is competent to glorify God until he is converted to 
him. Then a man, if he is faithful, commences to 
lay up treasures in heaven, as Jesus exhorts us to 
do, instead of continuing to " lay up treasures upon 
earth." Christians, remember the words of him you 
call your Saviour, "Ye cannot serve God and mammon." 
Examine yourselves, and be certain which one of the 
two you are serving. Where is your heart, your 
affections, on earthly treasures, or heavenly ones? 

Having shown that xrcacc does include the uncon- 
verted portion of humanity, it now becomes neces- 
sary to show what the " liberty of the glory of the 
children of God,' 1 is, into which they are to be intro- 
duced. The liberty of that glory is just what a be- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



369 



liever who is in Christ, and Christ in him, now en- 
joys. Mark, Paul don't say that the zrtaeQ shall be 
introduced into the glory of the children of God, 
but into the freedom of that glory. There is a vast 
difference between a person's being granted "the 
freedom of a city," and the ownership of that city. 
The children of God will inherit the glory, now in 
store for them, previous to the rest of mankind en- 
tering into the freedom of that glory. Paul don't 
say in verse 21, that the v-igiz, shall be delivered 
from the bondage of sin into the glory of God's chil- 
dren : and Myers, (in vol, 2, p. 72), where he says, 
" But verse 21, in point of fact, merely asserts that 
on the entrance of that glory the y->giz, is to be 
glorified also,'' makes an extraordinary mistake; 
for Paul neither says it, nor is any where taught in 
the Xew Testament. Jesus tells us that he has be- 
stowed this glory upon the elect, that the rest of 
mankind, e, the residue of men," may believe, John 
17. 

I must here say that the power now imparted by 
the Holy Spirit to the elect enabling them to believe 
the gospel of Christ, and to obey it, constitutes Paul's 
" freedom of the glory of the children of God.'' 
Thus, the children of God now have the liberty, or the 
privilege and the power to believe in, and receive the 
gospel, and the gospel only leads a person to that 
glory. The Jew does not now have that liberty ; but 
lie will in due time, whether he be in or out of the 
bod}*. No more do the non-elect now have that lib- 
erty, while God is now taking out from among the Gen- 



370 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



tiles a people for his name. It is folly to say that 
" taking out from among the Gentiles a people," as 
mentioned in Acts 15, means all the Gentiles ; there- 
fore, how can all the Gentiles now be taken out ? 
" Taking out " don't mean taking the whole. 

But Jesus don't say that such believers, " The res- 
idue of men," shall inherit that glory. Neither does 
Paul say that such shall become heirs of God and 
joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Such an inheritance 
embraces all that glory — both the glory mentioned 
by our glorious Saviour, and that mentioned by Paul, 
both being one and the same. Remember when 
the mother of James and John requested that her 
two sons might sit one on the right hand of Jesus 
and the other on the left in the kingdom, that Jesus 
replied that such a privilege was not his to give, but 
should be bestowed upon them for whom his Fa- 
ther had reserved it. And that he also said to his 
disciples, " It is your Father's good pleasure to give 
you the kingdom." 

Here I think I ought to assert that the teachings 
of the New Testament never will apparently har- 
monize with one another, until the church learns to 
distinguish between the heirs of God and joint heirs 
with Jesus Christ to this very glory Paul mentions, 
and others who will be finally saved. Yes, those who 
will believe when they shall behold that glory rest- 
ing upon the glorified bride of Christ. 

Please notice, I don't say that all " the residue of 
men " will even finally be saved. I will not decide 
that question. I leave it with God. But we all 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



371 



have a right to claim what Jesus and the apostles 
teach. Yet we should desire to know the worst, as 
well as the best of our case as constituting the hu- 
man family ; but it is folly, and even worse, to ex- 
pect to realize the benefits of a conditional promise 
unless we fulfill the conditions attached to the prom- 
ise. And when there is also a penalty for not com- 
plying with the conditions, we must expect that pen- 
alty — God's word is sure. 

Let us examine now the question whether irrational 
creatures can enter into the " liberty of the glory of 
the children of God." They must enter into, or 
upon that liberty in the same manner man does. 
How does man enter into that freedom ? By believ- 
ing in the Lord Jesus Christ, and obeying the gospel. 
Has a beast the requisite intelligence to thus be- 
lieve and obey ? Certainly not. And that ends the 
whole question, and shows that xrcoct; excludes all 
irrational creatures, and includes only the human 
race. 

Please remember that we are not considering the 
question whether all mankind will, or will not finally 
be saved, but whether any besides the elect, the 
joint heirs, will be finally saved. And I request the 
reader to notice that in the consideration of this 
question, it is not necessary to hold to the doctrine 
of an election before the creation, or at an} r time be- 
fore the birth of an individual. This same question 
obtains, or arises, under the Arminian theory, as well 
as under the election theory. For if God has not al- 
ready made an election, He certainly will do so at 



372 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the Parousia of his Holy Son, when it shall appear 
who are " worthy of that Age and the resurrection 
from among the dead." — when the wheat shall be 
separated from the tares — when " one shall be taken 
and the other left." 

CALVINISTIC TEACHINGS COMPARED WITH THE 
TEACHINGS OF THE SCRIPTURES. 

But that the reader may more clearly understand 
what Calvinistic election and reprobation is, or in 
other words, what predestination is, as held and be- 
lieved in by the various Calvinistic sects, and at the 
same time may compare such Election and Reproba- 
tion with the foregoing teachings of Jesus and the 
apostles, I here give extracts from the Westminster 
Confession, as found in a work entitled, " The Con- 
stitution of the Presbyterian Church in the United 
States of America," etc., and also called, " Confession 
of Faith." The chapter, section, and page are given 
so that any one can examine for himself. 

SHORTER CATECHISM. 
Chapter III. 
Of GocVs Eternal Decrees. 
God from all eternity did by the most and holy 
counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain 
whatsoever comes to pass ; yet so as thereby neither is 
God the author of sin ; nor is violence offered to the will 
of the creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency of sec- 
ond causes taken away, but rather established. 

II. Although God knows whatsoever may or can 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



373 



come to pass, upon all supposed conditions ; yet hath he 
not decreed anything because he foresaw it as future, or 
as that which would come to pass, upon such conditions. 

III. By the decree of God, for the manifestation of 
his glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto 
everlasting life, and others foreordained to everlasting- 
death. 

IV. These angels and men thus predestinated and 
foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed ; 
and their number is so certain and definite that it cannot 
be either increased or diminished. 

V. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life, 
God, before the foundation of the world was laid, accord- 
ing to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret 
counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in 
Christ unto everlasting glory, out of his mere free grace 
and love, without any foresight of faith" or good works, 
or perseverance in either of them, or any other thing in 
the creature, as conditions or causes moving him there- 
unto, and all to the praise of his glorious grace. 

VI. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so 
hath he, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, 
foreordained all the means thereto. Wherefore they 
who are elected being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by 
Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ by his 
Spirit working in due season are justified, adopted, 
sanctified, and kept by his power through faith unto sal- 
vation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effec- 
tually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, 
but the elect only. 

VII. The rest of mankind, God was pleased, accord- 
ing to the unsearchable counsel of his own will, whereby 
he extendeth or withholdeth mercy as he pleaseth, for 
the glory of his sovereign power over his creatures, to 



374 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



pass by and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for 
their sin, to the praise of his glorious justice. — pp. 25-30. 

Chapter X. 

III. Elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated 
and saved by Christ through the Spirit, who worketh 
when, and where, and how he pleaseth. So also are all 
other persons, who are incapable of being outwardly 
called by the ministry of the word. 

IV. Others hot elected, although they may be called 
by the ministry of the word, and may have some com- 
mon operations of the Spirit, yet they never truly come 
unto Christ, and therefore cannot be saved ; etc., etc. 

Let mothers, and all who expect become so, con- 
sider the last two sections, and decide if the language 
does not teach that all infants dying in infancy, 
except the few elect, are as certainly damned as any 
other persons. 

But mothers, please listen to God's word, which 
is far more comforting — yes, joyful ! " Lo, children 
are the heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the 
womb is his reward." Psalm 127 : 3. 

The quotations are given verbatim and in order, 
as they stand in the Confession of Faith, and are 
pure, unadulterated Calvinism ; and Schaff says in 
his History of Creeds, Vol. 1, p. 760, " The West- 
minster Confession sets forth the Calvinistic system 
in its scholastic maturity after it had passed through 
the sharp conflict with Arminianism in Holland, and 
as it had shaped itself in the minds of Scotch Pres- 
byterians and English Puritans during their conflict 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



375 



with High-Church prelacy."' And that there may be 
no mistake, T will add, that the quotation clearly 
sets forth the doctrine of election and reprobation as 
held by Calvinistic sects ; and generally by all pro- 
fessors who talk about God's " eternal purposes,'' 
and also, " the final perseverence of the saints," but 
do not utter or even mention the doctrine of predes- 
tination, observing discreetly and carefully the fol- 
lowing language in section VIII, same chapter, " The 
doctrine of this high mystery of predestination is to 
handled with special prudence and care, that men 
attending the will of God," etc., etc. — and those who 
hold it generally handle it with such special care, 
that they generally at first, carefully conceal it from 
view. 

Eliminating all needless verbiage from the forego- 
ing quotation, let us take the substance of it, as near 
as possible in its own words, and we have the follow- 
ing. God from all eternity did freely and unchang- 
ably ordain whatsoever comes to pass, (sec. 1) ; and 
some men and angels are predestined unto everlast- 
ing life, and others foreordained to everlasting death, 
(sec. 3) ; and their number is so certain and definite 
that it cannot be either increased or diminished, 
(sec. 4). Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, 
(sec. 6). The rest of mankind God was pleased to 
pass by, and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath 
for their sin, to the praise of his glorious justice 
(sec. 7). 

Please notice that in sec. 6 we are plainly told 
that none but the elect are redeemed — that is, all the 



376 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



rest of mankind have no Redeemer, — have no part 
or lot in Christ at all, or in what the church truly 
calls the glorious scheme of salvation; but let us 
place some more of this Westminster theory along- 
side of the foregoing. 

Chapter VI. 

Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment 
Thereof 

Our first parents, being seduced by the subtilty and 
temptation of Satan, sinned in eating the forbidden fruit. 
This their sin God was pleased, according to his wise 
and holy counsel, to permit, having purposed to order it 
to his glory. 

II. By this sin they fell from their original righteous- 
ness, and communion with God, and so became dead in 
sin, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of 
soul and body. 

III. They being the root of all mankind, the guilt of 
this sin was imputed, and the same death in sin and cor- 
rupted nature conveyed to all their posterity, descending 
from them by ordinary generation. 

IV. From this original corruption, whereby we are 
utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all 
good, and wholly inclined to all evil, do proceed all 
actual transgressions. — pp. 42-44. 

In these last sections is darkly described " original 
sin " so called ; but as many people are very much 
in the dark as to what the term " original sin " really 
means, I give it from " The Larger Catechism," 
page 187. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 377 



" The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell, 
consisteth in the guilt of Adam's first sin, the want 
of that righteousness wherein he was created, and 
the corruption of his nature, whereby he is utterly 
indisposed, disabled, and made opposite unto all 
that is spiritually good, and wholly inclined to all 
evil, and that continually ; which is commonly called 
original sin, and from which do proceed all actual 
transgressions." 

Notice, we are first told that original sin consists 
" in the guilt of Adam's first sin ;" and further, in 
chap. VI., sec. 3, that the guilt of this sin is imputed 
to us. But also observe, we are told that God pur- 
posed to order, that is, he did order, the fall of our 
first parents to his own glory, and that he permitted 
their fall, — see Sec. 1. Is it for God's glory that a 
small portion of his own creation should be saved, 
and the rest, the much larger portion, be subjected 
to endless misery, and also endure that misery to all 
eternity ? If so, then God's view of what real glory 
consists of, is very different from ours, and from 
what the Scriptures describe as God's glory, and also 
in entire opposition, and contradiction to both the 
nature and character of God as set forth by his Son 
in both word and deed. 

We had no part in Adam's sin ; then why should 
it be imputed to us, or in other words, laid to our 
charge? Is it not enough to inherit Adam's cor- 
rupted nature, and thus die with him a natural 
death, without having his sin so laid to our charge 
as to subject us to ceaseless woe ? I greatly reverence 



378 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



Gocl ; but he says, " Come and let us reason together " 
— and we intend to reason, and not be concluded by 
any body of men, and especially a body of men who 
seem to have, innocently and unwittingly, been 
moved by Satanic influence, to surround their fellow 
men with all the hatred and darkness of hell, and 
bar them from the love and light of heaven; and 
also to defame and vilify the character and nature of 
our omniscient, omnipotent and ever merciful Crea- 
tor, who is love itself in its essential purity and 
power. Truly, Satan, the great enemy of both God 
and men, must have heen present in great power, 
acting and speaking through them, who sincerely de- 
sired to promote God's glory, as he did through Pe- 
ter, when Jesus said, " Get thee behind me, Satan." 

And here I want to call attention to the fact that 
the Westminster Confession has long since been re- 
jected in England ; as SchafT says, " It is a remarkable 
fact, that this Confession failed in its native land, and 
succeeded in foreign lands. The product of English 
Puritans became the highest standard of doctrine for 
Scotch and American Presbyterians, and supplanted 
the older Confession of their own Reformers." Yes, 
they succeeded in foisting it upon others, but finally 
let it alone themselves. Would it not be far better 
to send it back from whence it came ? 

Let the reader carefully scrutinize the quotations 
from chapter 6, and what does he find ? That God 
permitted our first parents to sin and fall, and thus 
they became " dead in sin and wholly defiled in all 
the faculties and parts of soul and body " — that the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



379 



guilt of their sin is imputed to all their descendants, 
and that they inherit the same deadness in sin and 
defilement in all their faculties and parts ; and are 
thus utterly indisposed and opposed to all good, dis- 
abled to be otherwise, and inclined to all evil. And 
from sec. 6, which I will give, we learn, that every 
sin, both original and actual, brings guilt upon, us, 
and thus subjects us to death with all its miseries 
both spiritual, temporal, and eternal. Sec. 6, reads 
as follows : 

"Every sin, both original and actual, being a 
transgression of the righteous law of God, and con- 
trary thereunto, doth, in its own nature, bring guilt 
upon the sinner, whereby he is bound over to the 
wrath of God, and curse of the law, and so made 
subject to death, with all miseries, spiritual, tempo- 
ral and eternal." 

I call attention to chap. 6, to show that the Con- 
fession leaves all mankind in a most sinful, corrupt, 
wretched, helpless state ; and not only so, but also, 
an entirely hopeless state ; and that here predestina- 
tion finds them. And remember, the Confession 
tells us that predestination is a part of God's glori- 
ous plan from the beginning. And what does pre- 
destination there announce to the great human fam- 
ily of all ages and generations ? 

" By the decree of God, for the manifestation of 
his glory, some men and angels are predestinated 
unto everlasting life, and others are foreordained to 
everlasting death." chap. 3, sec. 3. 

Please notice from the foregoing language that 



380 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



the great mass of mankind are said to have been 
/ore-ordained to everlasting death at the same time 
that others, the elect, were appointed to everlasting 
life. Then mark, in sec. 4, we are told that " These 
angels and men, thus predestined and foreordained, 
are 'particularly and unchangeably designed: and 
that their number is so certain and definite, that it, 
[the number], cannot be either increased or dimin- 
ished." Now if the elect angels and men are " par- 
ticularly and unchangeably designed," and their 
number fixed and determined upon by the Almighty, 
what hope, yea, what room is there for the non- 
elect? There is none, if the non-elect are aban- 
doned by their Creator to eternal death, or punish- 
ment. It is both cruelty and mockery to tell such 
that they can be saved. Read the following lan- 
guage, and tell me, ye Calvinist, what hope there is, 
or possibly can be, for such, as you leave them with- 
out a Redeemer. — "They who are elected, are re- 
deemed by Christ. Neither are any other redeemed 
by Christ," etc., sec. 6. " So shall this doctrine af- 
ford matter of praise, reverence and admiration of 
God," sec. 8. 

John Wesley had a very different view in regard 
to such a theory being a matter of praise and admi- 
ration of God. He defines predestination to be " an 
eternal, unchangeable, irresistible decree of God, by 
virtue of which one part of mankind are infallibly 
saved, and the rest infallibly damned ; it being impos- 
sible that any of the former should be damned, or 
that any of the latter should be saved," — and then he 



NEW 



TESTAMENT THEOLOGY, 



381 



goes on to say that it turns God into a hypocrite and 
deceiver ; that it overturns His justice, mercy and 
truth, and represents Him " as worse than the devil, 
more false, more cruel, and more unjust." " This," 
he says, " is the blasphemy clearly contained in the 
horrible decree of predestination, and for this I abhor 
it (however I love the persons who assert it)." 

The inspired poet, Charles Wesley, writes as fol- 
lows : 

" O horrible decree, 

Worthy of whence it came! 
Forgive their hellish blasphemy, 
Who charge it to the Lamb." 

" To limit Thee they dare, 

Blaspheme Thee to thy face, 
Deny their fellow worms a share 
In thy redeeming grace." 

In another poem on " Predestination," he prays : 

" Increase, (if that can be), 
The perfect hate I feel 
• To Satan's Horrible Decree, 
That genuine child of hell ; 
Which feigns thee to pass by 
The most of Adam's race, 
And leave them in their blood to die, 
Shut out from saving grace." 

— Schaff's History of Creeds, vol. 1, pp. 895-6. 

I quote from these two distinguished men to show 
their views of Predestination, what it means, and 
that I am not alone in believing that the doctrine 
is from hell, and not from heaven, and that the real 
author of it is Satan himself. I mean that part 



382 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

which predestinates a portion of mankind to 
eternal misery, and leaves them entirely without a 
Redeemer. 

I have already shown that a very effective method 
of concealing the truth is to tack a lie to it. That is 
precisely what the Roman church practised, and 
protestants agree that such was Satan's work. Very 
well, could he not use the Westminster Assem- 
bly for the same purpose ? If Satan had never suc- 
ceeded in using a Christian, it might be denied. Ev- 
ery article of faith in the Confession was determined 
by ballot ; and the members of the Assembly were not 
unanimous either in their views or balloting. Schaff 
says, " The Assembly occupied about five years and 
six months for the completion of its proper work — 
the standards of doctrine, worship and discipline — 
and held no less than 1,163 regular sessions from 
July 1st, 1613, till February 22, 1669." 

Reader, here you have found reprobation. Yes, 
in the Westminster Catechism. This doctrine of 
reprobation is a portion of hell's most virulent pois- 
on ; for it both contradicts the word of God, and 
adulterates the truth as it is in Christ ; and duty to 
God and the church of Christ requires me to say 
that all who teach this doctrine disseminate religious 
poison. Certainly, it is not my fault that you have 
a religious teacher of that character for your parson ; 
and now being warned, see that you are not in fault 
by reason of having such a parson. He will cer- 
tainly have to give you more false doctrine to bol- 
ster up this — more perversion of Scripture and false 
meanings of words. 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



383 



Take Alexander Cruden's Complete Concordance, 
and turn to the word, world, — read his remarks upon 
that word and you have an illustration of the fact. 
The author first says of the word world, " It is taken 
for the whole universe, comprehending the heavens, 
earth, sea, the elements, the angels, men, animals, in 
a word, all created beings." That is well said ; but 
now the author's reprobation, hell's leaven, begins 
to work — and he adds, "It is put likewise for God's 
chosen people, whether Jews or Gentiles, 2 Cor. 5 : 
19. God was in Christ reconciling the world to him- 
self. And in John 3 : 16, God so loved the world 
that he gave his only begotten Son to die in their 
stead, and give satisfaction for them to his justice." 
The reader must see that Mr. Cruden tells us, that 
world only means the elect in the Scripture quoted, 
and that consequently, God did not so love the world 
as to give his only begotten Son, etc., but only loved the 
elect, and that God was in Christ reconciling the 
elect only to himself. Is not this a downright perver- 
sion of God's word ? transforming a truth into a lie, in 
order to sustain a religious dogma ? Reader, suffer 
me to warn you. Every one who holds the doctrine 
of reprobation, has this same bag of the old serpent's 
lying poison beneath his tongue. The mouth of the 
bag may generally be quite tightly closed ; but the 
bag is there with all its contents. I say this in kindness. 
Duty demands it. When will professors cease de- 
faming God and causing the ungodly to blaspheme ! 
Let professing believers once learn that God is love, 
and Calvinistic reprobation will quickly hie to its 



384 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



early home. Calvinist, if the doctrine of reproba- 
tion is a lie, whose preacher are yon when yon teach 
it, even if you teach it ever so prudently or slyly ? 
Whose servant are you while you defend it. ? Reflect 
— do you really see that God is love ? Can you so 
behold him, while you entertain the doctrine of rep- 
robation? If you don't behold God as love, you 
cannot so present him to others. It avails nothing, 
that is, it proves nothing to talk about them enter- 
taining such doctrine under whose labors many have 
believed in Christ — for Judas preached and cast out 
devils as well as the eleven. Not that I would inti- 
mate that such persons were like Judas, God can 
make, or use the folly of men to glorify himself. 

That God is love, is the great truth which Satan 
now wishes to most effectually hide from the view of 
men. The truth presents God's true character to 
the sinner ; and he then first begins to catch a 
glimpse of God, and of his own deformity. 

I will now present some Scripture at the same 
time letting words serve their proper purpose, viz ; 
to truly express ideas, not to pervert them, and the 
reader may decide what such Scripture teaches. 
And he will please notice that the quotations first 
speak of Christ, and secondly of his works. 

" And she shall bring forth a son ; and thou shalt 
call his name J esus ; for it is he that shall save his 
people from their sins. And the angel said to them, 
Be not afraid ; for behold I bring you tidings of 
great joy which shall be to all people ; for there is 
born to you this day in the city of David, a Saviour, 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 385 



which is Christ the Lord. On the morrow he seeth 
Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb 
the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the 
world. For God so loved the world that he gave his 
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him 
should not perish, but have eternal life ; for God 
sent not the Son into the world to judge the world, 
but that the world might be saved through him ; for 
I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. 
Neither pray I for these only, but for them also that 
believe on me through their word ; that they may 
all be one, even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in 
thee, that they also may be in us, that the world may 
believe that thou didst send me. I am the living 
bread which came down out of heaven ; if any eat 
of this bread he shall live forever ; ye&, and the 
bread which I will give, is my flesh for the life of the 
world. For the bread of God is that which cometh 
down out of heaven and giveth life unto the world. 
The kingdom of God is like unto leaven which a wo- 
man took and hid in three measures of meal, till it 
was all leavened. If any man sin, we have an advo- 
cate with the Father, JesusChrist, the righteous ; and 
he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours 
only, but also for the whole world. For to this end we 
labor and strive, because we have our hope set on the 
living God, who is the saviouh OP all men, espe- 
cially of them that believe. And we have beheld and 
bear witness that the Father hath sent the Son, the 
Saviour of the world. But all things are of God, 
who reconciled us unto himself through Christ, and 



386 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation , to wit : 
that God was in Christ reconciling the world 
unto himself, not imputing unto them their trespasses, 
and having committed unto us the word of recon- 
ciliation. For it was the -good pleasure of the Father 
that in him should all the fulness dwell, and through 
him to reconcile all things unto himself, having 
made peace through the blood of his cross ; through 
him, I say, whether they be things on earth, or 
things in the heavens. But not as the trespass so 
also is the free gift ; for if by the trespass of the 
one, the many died, much more did the grace of God 
and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus 
Christ, abound unto the many. And not as through 
one that sinned, so is the gift ; for the judgment 
came of one unto condemnation, but the free gift 
came of many trespasses unto justification. So then 
as through one trespass, the judgment came unto 
all men unto condemnation, even so through one act 
of righteousness the free gift came unto all men un- 
to justification of life. For as through the one 
man's disobedience the many were made sinners, 
even so through the obedience of the one, shall the 
many be made righteous. Moreover law came in 
that the trespass might abound ; but where sin 
abounded, grace did abound more exceedingly, that 
as sin reigned in death, even so might grace reign 
through righteousness unto eternal life through Je- 
sus Christ, our Lord. For God has shut up all to- 
gether in disobedience, that he might have mercy 
upon all. For the earnest expectation of the crea- 



NEAV TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



387 



tioii waiteth for the revealing of the sons of God ; 
for the creation was subjected to vanity [unbelief, 
sin and suffering], not willingly, but by reason of 
him who subjected it in hope, because the creation 
itself shall also be delivered from the bondage of 
corruption into the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God ; for we know that the whole creation 
groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 
John 1 : 3. Matt. 1 : 21. Luke 2 : 10, 11. John 1 : 
29. 3:16,17. 17:20,21. 12:47. 6:51,33. 1 John 
4 : 17. 2:2. 1 Tim. 4:10.1 John 4 : 14. Matt. 13 : 
33. Luke 13 : 21. 2 Cor. 5 : 19. Col. 1 : 19, 20. 
Rom. 5 : 15, 16, 18-21. 11 : 32. 8 : 19-22. 

Lest any one may take exception to my having 
omitted the 17th verse of Rom. 5, I will say that I 
omitted it because I consider its language only ap- 
plicable to the elect at present, or during the present 
age, however fully, or partially it may be applicable 
to the mass of mankind in ages, or aeons yet to 
come. But in justice to the reader, I should add 
the following Scripture, And whosoever shall cause 
one of these little ones that believe on me to stum- 
ble, it were better for him if a great millstone were 
hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the 
sea. And if thine eye cause thee to stumble, 
cast it out, it is good for thee to enter into the 
kingdom of God with one, than having two eyes, to 
be cast into hell, [Gehenna] where their worm dieth 
not, and the fire is not quenched. For every one 
shall be salted with fire, Mark 9 : 42-49. 

Now let us consider for a few moments the fore- 



388 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



going Scripture. First, the advent of Jesus was an- 
nounced as " tidings of great joy to all people/' 
Calvinists announce such advent as tidings of great 
joy to the few elect only. John the Baptist says, — 
" The Lamb of God who taketh the sins of the 
world." The Calvinist Baptist says, — The Lamb of 
God who taketh away the sins of the elect only, and 
more especially, or fully, those of that number who 
are immersed. And while Jesus says, " God sent not 
the Son into the world to judge the world, but that 
the world might besaved through him I leave the 
reader to decide, if Calvinism does not exactly re- 
verse the language, and teach, that God sent his Son 
into the world to bring judgment upon the world, 
and that the elect only might be saved. But when 
we come to the words in John 17 : 21, — "That the 
world may believe that thou didst send me," I can- 
not imagine how any intelligent being can have the 
effrontry to there substitute the word elect for that 
of world, or in the 23d verse, But what is the con- 
sequence to the world or mankind when they be- 
lieve ? Why, the same as it was to the apostles, or 
any other person — they have eternal life. And it 
matters not whether they have previous to believing, 
endured one, or many ages, (g^wvsc), of punishment 
either in Hades, Gehenna or elsewhere. If you say 
their belief in Jesus only serves to give them an 
eternal life of wretchedness, instead of happiness, 
suffer me to ask if you have not robbed yourself of 
the fruits of your own belief, and thus let yourself 
down into hell? And furthermore, allow me to re- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



389 



spectfully suggest for consideration, whether a per- 
son who is ever ready to knock away the props from 
under his fellow man, is not a very proper subject for 
that locality? Where is such a person's love? 
Please to well consider the last question. 

Again, Jesus says, God so loved the Avorld that He 
gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth 
in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 
So here Jesus himself tells you what the effect of 
believing is, namely, not to perish — and no one can 
rob three-fourths of the world of the fruits of be- 
lieving, any more than he can one individual. Mark, 
Jesus says it is the world that God loves — not simply 
the elect. Again, after Jesus says, " I am the living 
bread which came down out of heaven," please notice 
whether it is the elect, or the world to which that 
bread gives life. Read, "For the bread of God is 
that which cometh down from heaven and giveth life 
UNTO the woeld." Calvinist, or Arminian, dare 
you substitute in this declaration any other word for 
world ? 

Most certainly, the reader must have heard the 
ministers speak of the gospel leaven. Notice the 
the following words of Jesus — " The kingdom cf 
God is like unto leaven, which a woman took and 
hid in three measures of meal, till it was all leav- 
ened." By the kingdom of God is here meant the 
church ; and the quantity of meal can only signify 
all mankind; as Jesus says of the church that she is 
the light of the world and the salt of the earth. It 
cannot be said of the church, the leaven, that she 



390 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



leavens herself. That is not the office of leaven — it 
is to leaven something else, the meal. Bnt mark ; 
Jesns that the woman's leaven leavens all the 
meal, not a small part of it. Very well, Jesus says 
the kingdom of God, the church, is like the woman's 
leaven ; then will it not leaven the whole lump, 
the world, all mankind ? Don't suffer any misguided 
mortal to rob you of this truth ; for instance, by 
telling you that this leaven will so transform the car- 
nivorous lion that he will lie down by the lamb with 
no desire to eat it : and thus give this gospel truth 
to the brutes instead of man. Please remember that 
the kingdom of God is the church, the elect ; or 
some Calvinist may delude you by his teaching that 
the leaven, mentioned by our blessed Redeemer, is 
the gospel, and that the quantity of meal is the 
elect. And please remember, that a Calvinist inter- 
prets the gospel by the light, or rather the darkness, 
of the Westminister Confession, and stands up for it, 
and by it, as does the Romanist by and for the de- 
crees of the Vatican. Again, please notice that the 
elect apostles say that Christ is not only the propiti- 
ation for our sins, but for the whole world. And 
that God is the Saviour of all men, And then say 
that the ministry of, or doctrine of reconciliation is, 
— notice what that doctrine is — that God was in 
Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not im- 
puting to them their trespasses. How can any one 
have the presumption to substitute elect for world 
in that Scripture ! But the act proves beyond cavil 
that a confirmed sectarian endeavors to conform the 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



391 



Bible to his creed, instead of conforming his creed 
to the Word of God ; or construes the Bible by ei- 
ther the light or darkness of that creed. 

I leave the remaining Scripture for the reader's 
careful consideration, with the following remarks, 
namely, — That in Rom. 8 : 21, Paul asserts that the 
creation itself shall hereafter be delivered from their 
present bondage of sin into the same state and priv- 
ileges, viz., " the freedom of the glory," which the 
elect of all generations now enjoy during this present 
age, (auov). At least, I can see it in no other light. 
And I cannot perceive that the vilest sinner is made 
an exception of by the apostle. 

Neither is it revealed to us in what future age, or 
eeon this merciful and gracious work shall be com- 
pleted ; but to hold that it will not be completed at 
some time, however distant that may be, evidently 
contradicts these and other portions of Scripture, 
and represents God as not finally saving the world, 
but only a portion of it. And furthermore, any oth- 
er view represents Christ as not destroying all of 
Satan's works, but only a portion of them — and as 
not subduing all things unto himself but only a part 
— as not restoring all things to a state of purity and 
holiness, but only a part. 

Reader, do you know of any space outside of God's 
universe ? Certainly not. Then hell with all of its 
abominations must have a place within that universe ; 
and there would exist sin, wretchedness, corruption 
and woe — the works of Satan flourishing, and his 
power absolute over the millions and billions whicli 



392 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



both Arminianism and Calvinism consign to his 
ceaseless power, dominion and torture — thus leaving 
the glorious purpose of God incomplete for which 
Christ came into the world. If any one says, Well, 
I don't believe in any other eternal punishment but 
the annihilation of the impenitent, — then the object 
of Christ's mission remains incomplete, for annihila- 
tion is death of both soul, body and spirit : and the 
Scriptures, even from Genesis to Revelation, teach 
us that Satan is the author of death ; thus it is most 
especially a part of his works, and thus would ever 
exist and prevail. But furthermore, we are told that 
Jesus will destroy death, and also its author. But 
when death is destroyed it can not hold any one. 
Death may be compared to a prison building — demol- 
ish the prison, and are not the prisoners free ? But 
leaving out all reasoning upon the question, the plain 
simple declarations of God's word must stand; 
therefore let us stand upon them. Therefore when 
we there read that Jesus destroys death and brings 
in eternal life, let us believe it, even if we cannot 
fully understand how it will be accomplished. But 
if we would thus believe, we must never forget that 
God is love, and that with God all things are possi- 
ble. I do not decide, neither do I say that all men, 
without exception, will finally be saved ; for when 
the non-elect are hereafter admitted to, or rather, 
brought into " the freedom of the glory of the chil- 
dren of God," to which the elect only now have ac- 
cess and enjoy, I will not assert that a few may not 
then reject the gospel ; but I am unable to perceive 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 393 



how even that can be, and the purpose for which 
God sent his Son into the world, be accomplished. 

PROMISES OF GOD EMBRACING THE DEAD AS WELL 
AS THE LIVING. 

On one occasion Jesus said, I thank thee, O Fa- 
ther, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou didst hide 
these things from the wise and understanding, and 
didst reveal them unto babes : yea, Father, for so it 
was well pleasing in thy sight, Matt. 11 : 25, 26. 
And on another he said to the leading men among 
the Jews, Verily I say unto you, that the publicans 
and harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. 
Matt. 21 : 31. 

In the former declaration is taught the doctrine of 
election ; and from the latter, we may fairly infer 
that they whom Jesus addressed, would finally follow 
the publicans and harlots into the kingdom, as the 
publicans and harlots are said to precede them. How 
can the publicans and harlots enter the kingdom 
of God before any party who is not to follow them ? 
Jesus referred to some of the blinded Jews of Rom. 
11. But notice that Jesus thanks the Father that 
He had preferred the simple to the wise and prudent 
of this world. The Calvinist, in his imagination, 
sees the latter class reprobated to an eternal hell ; 
while Paul says, And so all Israel shall be saved : 
even as it is written, " There shall come out of Zion 
the Deliverer ; he shall turn away ungodliness from 
Jacob." Brother, does the term Jacob express the 
" spiritual Israel," or does it comprehend Jacob and 



394 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



all his descendants ? Remember that Jacob was 
Israel's first name ; and that God gave him the name 
of Israel. Again, Paul was not considering the situ- 
ation of the elect Hebrew Christians, but the situa- 
tion of those Hebrews who had rejected Christ. 

A portion of the church believe that a restoration 
of the living remnant of Jacob will take place in 
some future generation and period ; but few have 
ever thought that God's promises embraced the dead 
as well as the living, and also other nations as well 
as Israel. But read carefully, and without bias or 
prejudice, the prophecies, and you will find that it is 
so. Remember that God is no respecter of persons, 
although at one time, or in the order of time, Israel 
was once the favored people. David says, " All na- 
tions which thou hast made shall come and worship 
before thee " — not the remnant of such nations. 
Many nations have passed out of existence, or from 
off the earth, who never did worship God ; but God 
made them. The Sodomites were such a nation — let 
us consider their case, and hear what God says he 
will hereafter do for them. 

We have always considered them a noted sample 
of the wicked and ungodly. Such was their wicked- 
ness that God swept them from the face of the earth, 
and left not a remnant of them when he " rained fire 
and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all." 
But read Ezekiel 16, and hear what God promises 
the Sodomites. Speaking to Israel God says, verses 
48-55, As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sis- 
ter hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



395 



hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold this was 
the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, * * * therefore I 
took them away as I saw fit." Then God speaks of 
Samaria and her sins, comparing them with Israel's 
sins ; and says, verses 53-55, " When I shall bring 
again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her 
daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her 
daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of 
thy captives in the midst of them ; that thou mayest 
bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in 
all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort 
unto them. When thy sisters, Sodom and her daugh- 
ters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria 
and her daughters shall return to their former estate, 
then thou and thy daughters shall return to your 
former estate." Brother, in this language is there 
the least resemblance, or likeness of hell? And 
mark, these events take place after the resurrection ? 

I have already shown that the Israelites of every 
generation will in the ressurrection be restored to 
their former inheritance, or estate, the land of Ca- 
naan, and in this chapter we hear God declaring that 
the Sodomites shall at the same time be restored to 
theirs. And, of course, a resurrection must precede 
such restoration, as all the Sodomites were 
swept from the earth. And as we here read, that 
the Israelites and Sodomites are to be restored to 
their former estate at the same time, I recommend to 
the reader to turn again to Ezek. 37 and read and 
consider the account, or description there given of 
the resurrection of all Israel. Reader, please re- 



896 



TSTEW TESTAMEHT THEOLOGY. 



member also, that Sodom had been destroyed about 
a thousand years before this prophecy was uttered. 
And here we may profitably recall the words of our 
Saviour addressed to Capernaum, when he said, 
" Howbeit, I say unto you, that it shall be more tol- 
erable for the land of Sodom in the day of Judgment 
than for thee. For if the mighty works had been 
done in Sodom, which were done in thee, it would 
have remained unto this day." But the Sodomites 
were not then on trial for eternal life, as they had 
never heard the gospel, and therefore, they will then 
be beaten with few stripes, or none at all. 

As the true followers of the Lord Jesus rise first, 
the elect, to whom it is the Father's good pleasure to 
give the kingdom, it follows that the general resur- 
rection must be subsequent, and as we are told in 
Rev. 20, that " the rest of the dead lived not until 
the thousand years should be finished," it would 
seem as if a long period of time must intervene be- 
tween the time of the first resurrection and the final 
judgment and the restitution of all things. But long 
or short periods of time do not, in the least interfere 
with the plans of God, with whom one day is as a 
thousand years, and who works all things according 
to his will. When God says that a thing shall be, it 
is our duty to accept the declaration as the truth, 
remembering that with him " all things are possi- 
ble." 

We learn from the Scriptures, that the millennial 
age immediately follows the present one. But Paul 
speaks of ages, (accoveq), yet to come, when he says 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



397 



of the elect ; " And raised us up with him, and 
made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in 
Christ Jesus ; that in the ages to come he might 
show the exceeding riches of his grace, (favor), in 
kindness towards us in Christ Jesus." Where is 
such manifestation to take place ? Is it not upon 
the earth ? Is it'not to be for the good of the whole 
human family ? Having elected the " little flock, 11 
and exalted and glorified them, will he have nothing 
in store for the rest of mankind but eternal misery? 

Please consider how much turns upon the question 
of election : and I cannot but believe that the elec- 
tion of the bride of Christ is clearly established by 
the Scriptures. In fact, the doctrine of election 
seems to run through the entire Bible, or at least 
from Abraham's time. And now, did God intend 
this election for the purpose of manifesting his infi- 
nite love, mercy and good will towards all men, or 
did he conceive of and intend such election for the 
purpose of saving, exalting and glorifying a compar- 
atively few of the human family, and manifesting an 
entire indifference to the welfare and happiness of 
the greater portion of mankind, and also for inflict- 
ing eternal sufferings upon the latter? Or if you 
choose so to word it, leaving them to bring such suf- 
fering upon themselves. For with God all things are 
possible, and thus from the beginning he was fully 
able to arrange all things to the good pleasure of his 
will. I reply that God did intend such election for 
the purpose of manifesting his infinite love, mercy 
and good will towards all men ; and furthermore, 



398 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



that in due time he will fulfill such intentions ; and 
it matters not how many ages it may occupy. When 
the gospel church, the bride of Christ, is elected, and 
taken out from among men, is the glorious plan of 
salvation accomplished? No. Far from it. It is 
only the work of one age, (auou). God has a more 
lofty, God-like, and therefore glorious plan. If there 
is nothing more to be accomplished, why does our 
Saviour, the Saviour of the world, indirectly 
pray for, or mention the world, after requesting that 
his followers may all be one? John 17, And why 
does Paul tell us that the earnest expectation of the 
creation waits for the manifestation of the sons of 
God, that the world may also be delivered from the 
bondage of corruption into the freedom of the glory 
of the sons of God ? And I think no one will deny 
that the " sons of God " constitute the elect. And 
the elect bride of Christ, is the little company in con- 
junction with himself, through whom, Satan is soon 
to be bruised and all the nations of the earth to be 
blessed. May God hasten that happy day. 

But what does a Calvinist believe and ask, when 
he repeats the following words found in the burial 
service of the Episcopal church? — 44 Beseeching 
thee, that it may please thee of thy gracious good- 
ness shortly to accomplish the number of thine elect, 
that we, with all that are departed in the true faith 
of thy holy name, may have our perfect consumma- 
tion, both in body and soul, in thy eternal and ever- 
lasting glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord." What 
he asks for the elect is plain ; but the granting of 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOG V. 



399 



his request, in keeping with his views of God's plan, 
would immediately plunge the mass of mankind into 
an eternal hell of torment. Calvinist, think of what 
you ask, when you utter the foregoing prayer, or 
even when you say, " Thy kingdom come," in keep- 
ing with your views of the gospel plan. According 
to your views the coming of that kingdom would 
plunge three into hell, while but one would be raised 
to heaven. Yes, and we once heard of millions of 
infants in hell eternal, by reason of "original sin." 
And we were told to ask no questions, for such was 
the decree of inscrutable Providence. But that abom- 
inable lie of Satan is now kept far in the background, 
and we hear very little of it. What base and slan- 
derous lies has not Satan introduced into the church 
of Christ! — tares in the kingdom, to defame God, 
and to render the blessed gospel of our Redeemer, 
abhorrent to ail men, instead of good news ! And 
I leave it to the intelligent and considerate reader to 
decide how much of such work has been accom- 
plished through the religious creeds of men. 

Here is something from the pen of W. P. Mackay 
which expresses true election far better — " We have 
failed simply because we have been aiming at univer- 
sal conversion, and not at universal evangelization. 
We have been trying to convert patches, and not 
evangelize the whole. This is not the age of uni- 
versal conversion ; that is the age to come. Let us 
hearken to one of the apostles : ' Simeon hath de- 
clared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to 
take out of them a people for his name-' Here there 



400 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



is no indication whatever that the Gentiles were to 
be totally brought to God, and no man have need to 
say to his neighbor, ' Know the Lord.' So Christ 
taught his disciples that during his absence they 
were to act like fishermen with a drag net, and go over 
the sea and catch a net full of fishes, not the full- 
ness of the seas. Instead of this, the church has 
been abiding by one or two favorite pools, and en- 
deavoring to catch every fish, instead of passing 
along through the whole sea. The not understand- 
ing the character of the present dispensation, linked 
to that of innate selfishness that still adheres to us 
all, is the root of this disgraceful disobedience. " — 
W. P. Mackay, Pre-millennial Essays, pp. 458-461. 

And the following from Art, 3 of the Pre-millen- 
nial Creed is the same in substance. " The gospel is 
to be preached 'for a witness,' and then shall the end 
come. This is the dispensation of election, and not 
of universal conversion, Acts 15 : 14. Mat. 24 : 14." 

And article 7 of the same creed reads as follows : 
"I believe that the Jews shall be ultimately gather- 
ed again, as a separate nation, restored to their own 
land, and converted to the faith of Christ, Jer. 30 : 
10, 11. 31 : 10. Rom. 11 : 25, 26." 

The foregoing quotations are too plain to need com- 
ment, but neither of the writers tell us what will be 
the fate, or lot of them whom the " dragnet " does 
not reach, or of them who are not included among 
the elect of this age, or of this dispensation. Neither 
will I here answer positively concerning them who 
have the gospel while they tarry here in this life, and 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



401 



refuse to accept and obey it. I have already given 
you the correct significations of the word atcovio^ 
rendered in the New Testament everlasting and 
eternal ; and I leave it for you to decide whether 
your punishment for either rejecting, or disobeying 
the gospel will be temporal, or eternal. I know 
that God is loving, merciful and also just ; but we 
should not presume unwisely upon, his love and mer- 
cy, and thus continue in rebellion against him. If 
we do, we must expect a rebel's fate, which is pun- 
ishment. The longer a person continues in rebellion 
against God, the more degraded he becomes, for a 
continued rebellion increases his sinfulness, and sin 
degrades. Therefore, by a continued rebellion 
against God's will, a man sinks so low that he is 
ranked with them mentioned in Rev. 20 : 15, of 
whom it is said, " And if any was not found written 
in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire." 
This lake of fire is evidently the same as that of 
verse 10 and of Matt. 25 : 41, as one can readily see 
by comparison, and observing who are the occupants, 
viz : Satan and the wicked. And it also seems to be 
the Gehenna, (hell), mentioned in Matt. 5 : 29, 30, 
where Jesus says, If thy right eye cause thee to 
stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from thee ; for it is 
profitable for thee that one of thy members should 
perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast 
into hell , and also in Matt. 10 : 28, where he says, 
Be not afraid of them who kill the body, but are not 
able to kill the soul ; but rather fear him who is 
able to destroy both soul and body in hell. The lat- 



402 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



ter passage seems to intimate the doctrine of annihi- 
lation. And again, when we read of them who 
" shall not be hurt by the second death," and of those 
over whom "the second death hath no power," or au- 
thority, as in Rev. 20 : 6, the idea is presented that 
some may be affected by what is termed the second 
death, and yet be finally saved, " as if by fire." But 
let us strive to make both our calling and election sure, 
working diligently while the day lasts, ever remem- 
bering that the night cometh in which no man can 
work. We can fully rely upon God's mercy and 
love, and equally rely upon his rewarding every man 
according to his works, whether they be good or evil. 
Therefore, let us not rest until we know that our 
sins are blotted out, and have the evidence of the 
Holy Spirit that our names are written in the Book 
of Life. In the following language of Paul, 2 Thess. 
1 : 7-10, mark the great difference between the state 
of the holy at the coming of the Saviour, and that 
of the wicked, — " And to you that are afflicted, rest 
with us at the revelation of the Lord Jesus, from 
heaven with the angels of his power, in flaming fire 
rendering vengeance to them that know not God, 
and to them that obey not the gospel of our Lord 
Jesus, who shall suffer punishment, eternal [accovwz] 
destruction from the face of the Lord and from the 
glory of his might, when he shall come to be glorified 
in his saints, and to be admired in all them that be 
lieve." Behold the contrast ! one class is banished 
from his presence, and in the other class the Lord is 
glorified, being sharers with Christ in his glory which 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



403 



he has bestowed upon them, in keeping with his say- 
ing in John 17 : " The glory which thou hast given 
me I have given them." Why should any one sub- 
ject himself to banishment from God, and also to the 
second death ? Sinner, you cannot render the gos- 
pel untrue by denying it, or rather denying its 
truths. If true, as it is, it will ever stand as a testi- 
mony either against, or for you, according to your 
state ; therefore, whatever else you may do, ever con- 
fess Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God and the 
Saviour of the world, that he, in like manner, may 
confess you before his Father and his angels, Matt. 
10 : 32. Luke 12 : 8. And remember also, that in 
the same connection Jesus says, "He that denieth 
me in the presence of men, shall be denied in the 
presence of the angels of God." 

Truly the Scriptures teach us, if we will but un- 
derstand, the object of our Lord's return. He 
comes to glorify his church, and to be glorified in his 
church, and organize his kingdom, and to establish it 
upon the earth t that they who have suffered with 
him, may also reign with him. " That the saints of 
the Most High," who are not of this world, even as 
Christ is not of this world, "may take the kingdom 
under the whole heavens, and possess it forever," 
Dan. 7 : 18, 22. " Therefore wait ye upon me, saith 
the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey ; 
for my determination is to gather the nations, that I 
may assemble the kingdoms to pour upon them my 
indignation, even all my fierce anger, for the whole 
earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy." 



404 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



But God has no pleasure ill human sufferings, for 
God is love, and tells us that " He doth not, willing- 
ly afflict, nor grieve the children of men," and fur- 
ther says, " For the Lord will not cast off forever. 
But though he cause grief, yet will lie have com- 
passion according to the multitude of his mercies," 
Lam. 3 : 31-33. Therefore, God afflicts man for his 
good, and thus we read, " For when thy judgments 
are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will 
learn righteousness." Isa. 26 : 9. And in 24 : 21- 
23, we further read, " And it shall come to pass in 
that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the 
high ones that are on high, and the kings of the 
earth upon the earth ; and they shall be gathered to- 
gether as prisoners, are gathered together in the pit, 
and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many 
days they shall be visited. Then the moon shall be 
confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of 
hosts shall reign in Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, 
and before his ancients gloriously." This agrees 
with what Paul says of the coming of the Lord Je- 
sus to set up his kingdom ; and it is Christ who will 
subdue all things unto himself. Again, we read, 
" For thus saith the Lord of hosts, Yet once, it is a 
little, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, 
and the sea, and the dry land ; and I will shake all 
nations, and the Desire of all nations shall come, 
Haggai 2 : 6, 7. Who is this Desire of all nations 
but the Lord Jesus Christ from heaven ? At his first 
advent we are told that there was no beauty in him, 
that they should admire him, but was a man of sor- 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



405 



row, and acquainted with grief. And thus Paul 
says, For the earnest expectation of the creation 
waiteth for the revealing (or unveiling) of the sons 
of God * * and groaneth and travaileth in pain to- 
gether until now, Rom. 8. But the sons of God can- 
not be revealed previous to the revelation of their 
great head, the first-born of many brethren. Nations 
may not know what or whom they desire ; but the 
present dissatisfaction of the nations with their pres- 
ent governments, and the restless state of the people 
of the earth, and their earnest desire for advance- 
ment, and for something better, should cause Chris- 
tians to turn their eyes to the Word of the God they 
profess to serve, to obtain light and understanding, 
and to depend less upon some other resources upon 
which they now rely. 

When Jesus shall establish his kingdom, then 
peace and happiness shall prevail. When He shall 
take to himself his great power and reign, then, and 
not till then, all the ends of the world shall remem- 
ber and turn unto the Lord, and all the kindred of 
the nations shall worship Him, Psa. 22 : 27. 

As it has been omitted in the proper connection, I 
beg leave to here call attention to the following 
testimony from heaven respecting our Saviour. "And 
she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his 
name Jesus ; for it is he who shall save his people ; 
from their sins, Matt. 1 : 21. But all mankind 
of every generation are Jesus' people ,• for Ave 
read, " All things have been created through 
him, and unto [or for] him," Col. 1 : 16, And in 



406 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 

Heb. 1 : 1-3, " God, having of old time spoken unto 
the Fathers in the prophets, by divers portions and 
in divers manners, hath at the end of these days, 
spoken unto us in his Son, whom he appointed heir 
of all things, through whom also he made the 
worlds." Certainly, the words, " all things " here in- 
clude all mankind, and thus all mankind are Jesus' 
people. But, please notice, the heavenly message is, 
that Jesus shall save his people from their sins — not 
simply a part of them. Will airy one deny that all 
mankind are Jesus' people ? Then please to hon- 
estly admit it. 

Jesus comes to complete the restitution of all 
things. And if any one doubts, that there is much 
to be accomplished after the return of the Lord Je- 
sus from heaven, let him read with an unbiased mind 
the fourteenth chapter of Zachariah, which com- 
menceth, Behold the day of the Lord cometh, etc. ; 
also Ezek. 39, Joel 2 : 3. Rev. 20, 2 Thess. 1. Rom. 
8, 11, and Acts 15 : 14-18. But brethren, let us re- 
member that judgment "begins at the house of 
God, the church ;" and that we, the members of that 
house, are now on trial. Therefore, let us live as 
they who look for their Lord's return, and strive to 
make our calling and election sure, lest we become 
castaways ; always remembering that the day is ap- 
proaching when the tares will be separated from the 
wheat. The gospel net catches both good and bad ; 
but the time draws near, when will be fulfilled the 
words of our Redeemer, " Not every one that saith 
unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom 



NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY. 



407 



of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father 
who is in heaven." 

And now brethren, although we may not, at pres- 
sent, see " eye to eye," let us, in Christian love, join 
in ascribing praise, glory and dominion to God, and 
to the Lamb forever ; Amen. 



% 3 6 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



